


Conquering Oceans

by fullsunlet



Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Pacific Rim Fusion, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-04
Updated: 2019-10-26
Packaged: 2020-11-23 18:48:59
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 32,081
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20894414
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fullsunlet/pseuds/fullsunlet
Summary: When it had come down to making a choice, Donghyuck had chosen Jeno over Mark to be his co-pilot. Two years later, Donghyuck found himself in need of a new partner. Coming face-to-face with Mark, he realised that he wanted nothing more than to Drift with the other again.





	1. Conquering Minds

When Donghyuck was grounded, it didn’t hit him as hard as he had expected it to. Soon after Donghyuck stepped into the Los Angeles Shatterdome – his home for the past three years – he was called to Marshal Moon’s office. It came as no surprise though. He had anticipated it and he knew the exact reason why he was being called to the Marshal’s office. 

After mumbling a quick _thanks_ to the Local Command Centre (LOCCENT) technician, Lee Taeyong who gave him the instructions, he started making his way to the Marshal’s office, the feeling of dread increasing with every step he took. Jeno, his best friend and co-pilot of Golden Sunset, trailed behind him. 

Throughout the walk, silence covered them both like a blanket. Only their footsteps could be heard as they walked down the long corridor to the Marshal’s office, the sound bouncing off the walls sending waves of echoes down the minimal space of the corridor. 

_“Sunset, report!” Marshal Moon called, no trace of fear and panic evident in his voice as in his emotionless face which he had perfected over the years. Despite his calm façade, everyone else knew that Marshal Moon was worried about Golden Sunset’s pilots. The clenched fist of the Marshal lying atop one of the tables did little in hiding that fact. _

_“Donghyuck! Donghyuck!” Jeno cried out, voice pained and clearly frightened. “Lee Donghyuck!”_

_“Jeno what’s wrong? Answer me,” Marshal Moon spoke through the microphone in the same composed tone he took on just now, giving off an aura of being unruffled but the action of tightening his fist said otherwise. “Breathe, Jeno.” He continued when he heard hiccups and harsh breathing. Despite the worry rapidly building up, he was still the Marshal after all and had to take on the role of being the rational and calm one in situations like this. “What happened to Donghyuck?”_

_A sharp inhale reverberated through the room before Jeno spoke, his voice coming out terrifyingly shaky. “Donghyuck – he –” he choked out and Marshal Moon had to calm him down by offering kind words of encouragement before he could continue again. “Donghyuck blacked out. I don’t know what happened I don’t know what to do but I’m piloting Golden Sunset on my own and I’m scared. I’m scared for him I’m scared for myself.” Jeno sounded growingly anxious as he spoke, pace increasing and he was tripping over his words._

_Thankfully, it was only a Category Two Kaiju so Jeno managed to take it down within a matter of minutes – five to be exact. But five minutes too long. Solo Piloting was considered an extremely dangerous act and held the potential risk of killing the pilot. Jeno’s breathing became more erratic by the second, spurring Marshal Moon to send down helicopters to fetch the pilots of Golden Sunset and the Jaeger herself._

Donghyuck took in a deep breath the same time someone clasped lightly on his shoulder, making him stop in his tracks. He looked up, shaking his head a little to clear the jumbled thoughts clouding his head, and met his partner’s concerned eyes, urging him to smile a little despite everything. Jeno gave him a gentle squeeze, eyes warm with affection, before slowly walking away; only Donghyuck had been called to the Marshal’s office. 

He knocked once a little too softly and didn’t get a response, making him frown a little. The next time he knocked the door, he bumped his knuckles against the surface a little harder and cleared his throat loudly, hoping the Marshal would at least hear his cough – the Marshal had a tendency to be too caught up in his work sometimes, ignoring everything else around him even if he had been the one calling people up to his office in the first place. 

“Come in.”

Once again, Donghyuck inhaled deeply before he turned the doorknob and gently pushed the door open. “You needed to see me, Marshal?” he asked timidly, voice small, as he stood awkwardly by the door after closing it.

Marshal Moon looked up from the file in his hands. “Yes, sit down.”

Donghyuck pulled out a chair from the other side of the table, making sure that no screeching noise emitted during the process because he simply didn’t want to disturb the still air despite knowing that the Marshal wouldn’t have minded. “I know what I did was –”

Before Donghyuck could even get close to what he wanted to say, Marshal Moon waved his hand nonchalantly, stopping Donghyuck from saying anything because he wanted to say something first. “You don’t need to explain yourself.”

“But I –”

The younger boy received a cold stare before he promptly shut his mouth, knowing that if he said anything further, Marshal Moon would have started nagging. It was just something the Marshal often did out of the goodness of his own heart, as draggy as it could get, but it was only for the pilots’, and sometimes even the technicians’ own good.

“You don’t need to explain yourself because it wasn’t your fault. I don’t know what happened in there, Donghyuck. But you blacked out for a whole five minutes leaving Jeno to pilot the Jaeger on her own. It was dangerous.”

Donghyuck could only nod his head solemnly, trepidation pooling in the pits of his stomach as the Marshal continued speaking. Marshal Moon’s face is as expressionless as always but his tone is apologetic with the next sentence he says. “I’ve decided to ground you for the time being. Jeno will have another co-pilot.”

“Wait,” Donghyuck said quickly (his voice might have broken a little). “Another co-pilot?” He sounds as confused as he was feeling at that moment. “What do you mean? He has a co-pilot ready for him _already_?”

When the Marshal’s brows furrowed, Donghyuck winced, afraid that he was being too rude to the Marshal. Marshal Moon had a good temper but that didn’t mean he would tolerate any disrespect towards him.

“Jeno has another co-pilot?” Donghyuck repeated in what he hoped was a calmer tone that didn’t end with his voice cracking. “I don’t quite understand.”

A small, pleased smile settled on Marshal Moon’s face. “Jaemin’s awake. He’s Jeno’s new co-pilot. He’s not coming back to training immediately of course, so Jeno will get some time to rest too. But he’s awake and now we got one of our best teams back.” Sighing, Marshal Moon offered Donghyuck a kind look. “I’m not grounding you because I think you’re bad or that you and Jeno aren’t good as a team. I have my reasons, Donghyuck.”

But Donghyuck wasn’t listening to the Marshal any longer. At the mention Jaemin’s name, Donghyuck’s had eyes widened, the world around him disappearing as he was left to his thoughts. Jaemin, Donghyuck’s childhood friend, was awake? When? How? Was he alright? Did he sustain any lasting damage? Donghyuck had a torrent of questions that he wanted to ask the Marshal. He was so impatient that he could hardly sit still and the Marshal must have sensed it because he was looking back at Donghyuck, amused. Donghyuck bit back his desire to unleash his plethora of questions onto the Marshal and waited as patiently as he could despite the internal turbulence within him. 

Two years ago, Jeno and Jaemin had been the strongest pair in the whole Shatterdome. Their combat skills were unmatchable and they were completely in sync whenever they sparred in the combat room or whatever they did together. The Drift Compatibility test they had taken later on only served as more evidence that they had been the golden pair. Donghyuck had been there amidst his childhood friend’s and best friend’s success and glory. As their mutual friend, he had been proud. Although more than that, he had nothing to be jealous of because he had his own partner – the one who had matched him equally in strength and definitely not wit (in his very honest opinon), but they had been fully synchronised with one another and had been Drift Compatible as well.

They had come close to being the best but Jeno and Jaemin outshone them. Everything had been perfect. Nothing had gone wrong until a Category Four Kaiju came too close to the Shatterdome one day, causing the whole place to shake violently. Some of its walls had crumbled down and a small part of the floor had split open. Jeno and Jaemin had been practising then. Neither of them had seen part of the ceiling collapse until all Jeno could see was a pool of sticky red substance around his feet – Jaemin’s blood.

The news had come as a shock to Donghyuck – he cried for hours and locked himself in his Rangers Quarters, tucked in the arms of his partner as the latter whispered soothing words into his ear. Still, Donghyuck could not get over the fact that his childhood friend might _not make it_.

He had been about to fulfil his dream of piloting a Jaeger; Jeno’s and his very own Jaeger – Violet Destiny. Apparently, Jaemin’s injury had come as a shock to the whole Shatterdome, and not only Donghyuck. But they hadn’t had enough pilots to fill in the empty void Jeno and Jaemin had left. The final decision made by the higher-ups had come quickly – they were going to find Jeno a new co-pilot because he was too talented a Ranger to be staying in the Shatterdome and not piloting a Jaeger.

When the news had reached Jeno, he panicked, tears prickling at the corner of his eyes because he didn’t want a new co-pilot; he didn’t want to pilot Violet Destiny with anyone but Jaemin. He had wanted to wait for Jaemin to wake up; he believed that Jaemin would wake up. 

So he had looked for Donghyuck. It hadn’t been Jeno’s most rational decision but had been at a loss and he knew that he could count on Donghyuck because the latter always had some sort of plan up his sleeve, a way out for them.

Donghyuck’s suggestion had surprised Jeno. He had offered to become Jeno’s new partner. He had said that they could make it because they simply _could_. At that point, Jeno should have known that it was going to be a bad idea but he had allowed Donghyuck to finish explaining – their Drift Compatibility test results were nothing short of Jeno’s and Jaemin’s. The three of them had taken the Drift Compatibility tests with one another and it had been decided that Jeno and Jaemin team up because they had the strongest neural handshake. Donghyuck’s test results with either of them had been satisfactory though.

It had been a good idea at that point in time, but _only_ at that point in time because Jeno suddenly realised that Donghyuck already had a partner. 

“It’s okay,” Donghyuck had said casually, smiling a little. “He won’t mind.”

Donghyuck had chosen his best friend and a few days later, his partner had left for the Sydney Shatterdome (without a word, not even a ‘goodbye’) to train while he had stayed behind to train with Jeno. It had been weird the first few days because Jaemin had still been unconscious, showing no signs of waking up. He hadn’t been practising with his _ex_-partner anymore, the one whom he had grown used to for a year; he was practising with his best friend and he went back to an empty room every night (with an empty heart) before he finally moved into Jeno’s room.

He had chosen his best friend over his partner that day. 

But at that moment in the Marshal’s office, Donghyuck lost his best friend as a partner. He wasn’t particularly upset, neither was he shocked. He was glad that his childhood friend was finally awake and he was also really elated that two of his closest friends were finally going to pilot…

Donghyuck jerked when a thought crossed his mind, panic apparent on his face as he started flailing with his hands causing the Marshal to throw him a quizzical look to which he replied with a sheepish smile, stopping his hand movements, “what about Golden Sunset?”

Again, the Marshal frowned and again, Donghyuck winced. He was quite certain that he did it this time – he successfully managed to annoy the Marshal who had a heart of gold. But again, he was proven wrong. “She’s grounded as well.”

At that, Donghyuck spluttered. “You can’t ground her!”

“And why not?”

“Because… because…” Donghyuck was at a loss for words and he found himself gaping like a fish instead because the Marshal _could_ ground her. “What are they going to pilot then?”

Marshal Moon raised his brow and stared at Donghyuck as if the answer was the most obvious thing in the world. “Violet Destiny of course. Golden Sunset’s yours.” He gave Donghyuck a meaningful look. “Golden Sunset’s yours and you know who else’s.”

*****

“Stop sulking, your jaw is going to drop off,” Renjun said dryly as he chewed on his piece of bread. “Shouldn’t you be happy that your childhood friend’s back?”

Donghyuck glared before snatching Renjun’s bread away, ignoring the middle finger the latter sent his way. “I _am_ happy. But I’m also grounded.” Donghyuck said in between mouthfuls of bread. “And Golden Sunset’s grounded too.”

Renjun shot him a look of disgust, one which said chew properly before you speak, will you. He stole a few pieces of fries from Donghyuck’s plate. “I heard they were going to find you a new co-pilot though.”

“Really?” The simple piece of news made him so elated that he could even forgive Renjun for stealing his food. Then he brightened up significantly at the thought of not being grounded forever. Not that Marshal Moon would do that to him. “Where are the candidates from?”

“I only heard, Donghyuck. You got to ask Dongyoung about these kind of things.”

Kim Dongyoung was the chief officer of LOCCENT, which also meant that he oversaw everything happening in the Los Angeles Shatterdome. 

A twinkle of mischief could be seen in Donghyuck’s eyes and then he thanked Renjun for the bread and stuffed the remaining into his mouth, completely ignoring Renjun’s insults before he walked off to LOCCENT.

“Dongyoung!” 

Donghyuck’s loud exclamation caused Dongyoung to jump. Hand over his heart, Dongyoung spun around, ready to give whoever-it-was that shocked him a good scolding when his eyes landed on Donghyuck. Eyes narrowed, Dongyoung folded his arms across his chest. “What do you want, Donghyuck? Aren’t you grounded?”

Grinning, Donghyuck pushed himself up on a table, next to one of the control panels.

“Get down.”

“I’m grounded from piloting a Jaeger, not from walking around the Shatterdome,” Donghyuck clarified, just to annoy Dongyoung.

“Get down,” Dongyoung repeated, pulling Donghyuck’s arm, making the younger pout but he allowed Dongyoung to drag him off the control table. “And stop giving me heart attacks with your shouting.” 

Donghyuck’s pout faded away quickly and he rolled his eyes, making a show of it because Dongyoung was being ridiculous. Dongyoung was the head of LOCCENT; he saw monsters ten times the size of Namsan Tower back home (if it was still there) raiding the country every now and then. A little ‘loud’ call – Donghyuck wouldn’t call it shouting – couldn’t have caused him a heart attack. The screams of the Kaijus were twenty times more deafening. “But you’re fine right?” Donghyuck quipped, ignoring Dongyoung’s look of disapproval and he was about to place his hand over Dongyoung’s heart only for it to be smacked away. “Anyway, I’m here because I was wondering if you knew where the candidates are coming from.”

“Candidates?”

“Yeah. You know, for the selection of my co-pilot,” Donghyuck said casually.

Once again, Donghyuck succeeded in drawing a reaction out of Dongyoung. “You little shit!” Dongyoung pointed at Donghyuck accusingly. “How did you even know?”

“Renjun.”

Clenching his fists, Dongyoung looked up to the ceiling, praying for patience to deal with Donghyuck as he started mumbling to himself about _bratty pilots_ and _Renjun’s going to get it from me_ and _Jeno is the best_.

“So?”

With a sigh, Dongyoung stopped his chanting and he ran his fingers through his hair. “Tokyo, Vladivostok and other places, you know and…” Dongyoung paused as a concerned look surfaced upon his face. 

“And?” Donghyuck asked, eagerness evident in his voice as he leaned in closer as if Dongyoung was already telling him the last destination, just in a voice too soft.

“And…” A pause again, a flash of sympathy in Dongyoung’s eyes. “And Sydney.”

The colour to drained from Donghyuck’s face. His mouth went dry and he thought his heart beat slowed down as everything else around him proceeded in slow-motion. “Sydney.”

“Sydney,” Dongyoung echoed, nodding in affirmation. “But I honestly don’t know who the Rangers are. You’ll have to see when they arrive in a month.”

A month. That was a rather short grounding period.

“Do you think he’ll be here?” Donghyuck muttered to no one in particularly but Dongyoung heard him, heard the bitter pain laced in his voice. 

He walked over to the younger boy and ruffled his soft golden locks. “I really don’t know, Donghyuck. But if he comes, what are you going to do?”

Now it was Donghyuck’s turn to sigh. He laid his head on the table, cheek pressed against the cool surface of metal and palms spread atop it. “I really don’t know Dongyoung, I really don’t know. I don’t know how to face him.”

*****

Two weeks had passed since then and all Donghyuck had been doing was dread the arrival of his potential co-pilots. It was like receiving a punch to the face and then getting thrown out of the Conn-pod.

The only good news was that Jaemin had been steadily recovering. He could at least spar with Jeno in the combat room then. And after all their training (mostly to get Jaemin back into shape), they would do their Drift Compatibility test which Donghyuck thought wouldn’t be a problem at all.

He munched on his bread agonizingly slowly since he had nothing to do anyway besides training and resting. Blacking out in a Jaeger took a serious toll on him and while the effects took some time to show, he sure felt them fully.

When he heard the sound of chairs moving, he raised his head and saw two of his closest friends leaving the cafeteria. They were chatting animatedly with one another as they made their way to the door. Jaemin caught his eye and brightened up instantly, giving a little over energetic wave before Jeno spotted Donghyuck and waved cheerily to him as well.

Lifting his hand, Donghyuck bid them goodbye, watching their backs as they left the dining area and then went back to eating the food he had been trying to stomach for the past hour. It wasn’t that he didn’t like food – he just had a very small appetite, which he guessed was caused by fainting in a Jaeger, and being grounded was actually affecting him more than he liked or would ever admit.

“Donghyuck!” Renjun shouted and slammed both his palms on the table Donghyuck was sitting at, causing it to vibrate from the impact, making Donghyuck choke.

Grabbing his cup, Donghyuck downed a mouthful of water before glowering at Renjun. “Must you?”

“Decided to take a page from your book on how to annoy my boss.”

Donghyuck thought back to when he almost gave Dongyoung a ‘heart attack’ and groaned in defeat. He would get back at Renjun next time. “Fine. But what do you want?” He went back to eating.

“The candidates are here.” 

“What?” Donghyuck snapped, incredulous, as Renjun took a step back. “They weren’t supposed to come in until another two weeks? I was supposed to have a month to prepare!”

Technically, Donghyuck didn’t have to ‘prepare’ for anything. All he had to do was rest so that he could pilot a Jaeger again. _If_ he ever wanted to pilot a Jaeger – Golden Sunset – ever again. Naturally, that was all Donghyuck had been doing, and also mentally preparing himself for whoever his new co-pilot might be but no one else needed to know that. 

With a roll of his eyes, Renjun pulled the chair opposite Donghyuck out to sit. “Marshal said plans changed. I’m already breaking all my LOCCENT protocols by telling you this okay. And what preparation do you need to do?” He was frowning by the end of the sentence, a judgemental look clear on his face as he stared Donghyuck down.

“What LOCCENT protocols? You guys even have protocols?” Feigning ignorance wasn’t going to get Donghyuck out of Renjun’s questioning.

Renjun shot him a look.

“Fine.” Dropping the bread back onto his plate, Donghyuck took his time cleaning his hands on a napkin. “What preparation I needed to do? Lots of it. Mental, emotional, physical. You name it. I _blacked out_ in a Jaeger in case you had forgotten.”

“You’ve been sleeping and eating,” Renjun pointed out. “Literally.”

Elbows on the table, Donghyuck rested his face between his palms as he stared at Renjun intensely. “Is he here?”

At that, Renjun’s eyes softened. “Oh, Donghyuck, you know he doesn’t hate you.”

“Is he here?” Donghyuck repeated stubbornly, determined to get an answer from Renjun though a small part of him didn’t want to find out. It would be easier if he didn’t know, Donghyuck tried telling himself but then again, if he was here, Donghyuck was bound to meet him sooner or later so why not find out first?

“He’s the candidate from Sydney,” Renjun said before sending Donghyuck a look of concern. “Good luck.” And with that, Renjun stood up to leave because Dongyoung was paging him.

Luck wasn’t what Donghyuck needed; he needed courage.

*****

Donghyuck received the news of the candidates’ arrival early the next day. Acting surprised, he asked, “isn’t it a little early?”

“Change of plans by the Marshal,” was the reply.

_‘Of course.’_

He thanked his messenger though he already knew everything. Then, he quickly made his way to the combat room. Deep down, he was anticipating the meeting with his potential co-pilots as much as he was dreading to meet a certain someone. Despite feeling anxious and frightened (and maybe a little worried) at first, he soon found himself ready to meet them. Lee Donghyuck wasn’t a coward.

The combat room suddenly looked smaller and stuffier now that it was packed with people – other Rangers, the candidates and spectators, all there to witness the part of the selection test for Donghyuck’s co-pilot.

Donghyuck looked around the room convinced that he wasn’t looking for anyone but when his eyes spotted a familiar face, his guts clenched. 

Mark Lee was there. Mark Lee, his _ex_-partner, was there. 

He looked different though, not the same boy that Donghyuck used to know and though he wouldn’t admit it aloud to anyone, in the private depths of his own mind (and heart), he acknowledged the bitter pang that he felt. He focused on the physical aspects that have changed rather than the foreign aura emitted by Mark. He stared a little at the other. Mark had grown taller; they were probably about the same height now though Donghyuck could remember a time when the other had been taller. Mark also looked more mature now; lines of experience and doubtless tremulous hardship were etched on his face, his chin sharper than Donghyuck had ever seen, making him look older than he really was. 

But beneath all Mark’s physical exterior, Donghyuck could see the hurt – a raw wound – rooted deeply in his eyes. Despite that familiar twinkle which Donghyuck found somewhat comforting, the pain was present in his eyes; anyone could see that. But no one knew of its roots. Donghyuck had a suspicion (maybe it had something to do with the breakup of their partnership?) but he realised with a sore ache, which he immediately crushed, that he didn’t have a definite answer. He sighed. 

Donghyuck pushed away all thoughts and focused on Mark’s appearance again – at least it distracted him from unwanted thoughts which would inevitably stir up irrational resentment. A mop of dark hair – unruliness in all its glory, even darker eyes which gleamed with a kind of childish mischief yet danced with danger – Donghyuck took it all into memory, replacing the old with the new. With seemingly no permission from his brain, his legs started moving, taking him right to where Mark was. In a slight daze, he didn’t notice the curious stares thrown his way.

“Mark,” Donghyuck called out, his tongue working without control from his brain as well, and he found himself missing the way the name slipped out from his mouth so naturally. The whole room went silent, deafeningly so.

Mark raised his head slightly, his surprised eyes looking into Donghyuck’s own surprised ones, as if he didn’t quite know how he had come here. 

“It’s been a while,” Donghyuck commented lightly while reaching out to brush his fingers gently against Mark’s ears. “It’s been so long.”

For the first time since Mark stepped into the room, he smiled, albeit only a little. “Hey.”

It was as if the sound of Mark’s voice (Donghyuck realised with more than a tinge of annoyance how much he had missed it) awoken something in him and Donghyuck snapped out of his disorientated mood. 

Donghyuck was about to say something else, something more when he heard his name being called. “I’ll see you later okay, Mark?”

“See you on the floor, Donghyuck.”

When Donghyuck heard his name coming from Mark’s mouth so smoothly, his stomach fluttered and he started to feel more at ease. He felt a strange sense of warmth and comfort from that and maybe it was a little warped but it was Mark and it certainly felt like home. With just his name rolling off Mark’s tongue, he felt like he was thrown back three years in time and nothing had happened at all and all was still peaceful. It felt like nothing had changed.

Donghyuck spared one last look on Mark before he reluctantly turned away. He still had so many questions to ask. How have you been? How was Sydney? Did you meet anyone? Did you get a partner while you there? Did you sign up for this? Why do you look so sad? But Donghyuck knew that now wasn’t the time to ask (as much as he wanted to) so he bit back his words and gritted his teeth.

He went to one side of the ring in the middle of the room and was greeted by Dongyoung who was scowling. “What?”

Dongyoung shook his head. “Nothing.” He grinned when he caught Donghyuck’s eye. “I just hope Ranger Lee isn’t too love struck to fight properly later.”

Donghyuck frowned. “Watch me.”

And so Dongyoung did and he was thoroughly impressed. Donghyuck had won every match so far without even breaking a sweat, ending it so quickly his opponents didn’t even know when the wooden staff touched them. Dongyoung would like to clap slowly and dramatically to congratulate Donghyuck on all his wins but not yet. There was still one more opponent.

“Mark Lee,” Dongyoung called out, throwing Donghyuck a worried glance as he did so. Donghyuck did nothing more than give a firm nod to assure Dongyoung that he was fine.

Whispers sounded through the room and Donghyuck could catch some of them, _they know each other, yeah apparently they used to be partners, then shouldn’t they team together already._ A bitter smile made its way onto Donghyuck’s face as he continued listening to the comments. 

They didn’t know what happened. They didn’t know anything. They didn’t know them.

The last candidate made his way to the ring opposite Donghyuck. He grabbed a wooden staff as Donghyuck tightened his grip on his own.

At the words _begin_, Donghyuck launched into an attack, moving forward so swiftly and gracefully as if he were born to do this and striking Mark easily with his staff. Previous rounds didn’t tire him out at all. Instead, adrenaline was now rushing through his veins.

“1-0,” Donghyuck said, a smirk playing on his lips.

Mark quirked a brow, amused. He retaliated quickly and soon landed a hit on Donghyuck as well. “1-1.”

He couldn’t land his next hit on Mark as soon as he had liked. The match dragged on for another hour perhaps; Donghyuck didn’t know because there weren’t any clocks in the combat room. Beads of perspiration started trickling down the sides of his face; the consecutive hours of battles was finally started to show. A crack was starting to show and Donghyuck knew that it would be over for him if Mark spotted it.

This had to end. Donghyuck growled menacingly as he crouched down and swung his wooden staff, aiming for Mark’s legs but the latter managed to jump in time to avoid it. Donghyuck was however, relentless in his attack as he gave Mark no time to recover before he stood up and swung his staff again, striking Mark in the shoulder. 

“2-1,” Donghyuck said, breathing unevenly.

Mark returned the favour of giving Donghyuck no time to recover as he launched into his attack, surging forward aiming to strike Donghyuck in the shoulder but the older male was agile and dodged the attack smoothly. He anticipated Donghyuck’s next move, so before the other could strike, Mark was already spinning left, bringing his arms up to land a blow on Donghyuck’s ribs. 

The impact caused Donghyuck to stumble backwards as he clutched his side.

“Guess we’re even now,” Mark commented haughtily and Donghyuck wanted nothing more than to wipe that smug look off his face. Familiarity gnawed under Donghyuck’s skin.

“Enough,” Marshal Moon’s voice boomed through the room. “I’ve seen enough. You are all dismissed.”

That caught Donghyuck a little off-guard but when he realised that Mark was already ready to bow – to officially end the match – he imitated Mark’s stance and they both bowed when Dongyoung said _game_.

*****

“That was impressive,” Renjun said after settling down next to Donghyuck in the cafeteria. “You were great.”

“Thanks,” Donghyuck mumbled half-heartedly. His mind was too pre-occupied with other thoughts.

“So who do you think is your co-pilot?”

“Mark,” Donghyuck responded immediately, heart skipping a beat at how fast he was to admit it. “I mean…” he looked up at the ceiling and pondered for a moment. “You saw what happened. I could read his moves and he could read mine. That’s what Drift Compatibility is all about, that’s what having a partner is all about – being the perfect other half. Sure there were a few other decent Rangers too but I don’t think I’d be able to Drift with any of them.”

“You never know,” Renjun offered kindly.

Donghyuck took a moment to consider Renjun’s words. “Yeah, I guess you’re right.”

“Don’t think too much about it.” Renjun patted him gently on the back. “You’ll get to know the chosen candidates in a few days so just…” Renjun knitted his brows together, thinking about the right words to say. “Just stop worrying and sleep on it or something.”

That night, Donghyuck didn’t get much sleep as painful memories flashed past his mind throughout the entire night, like an old film playing on a broken television screen.

When morning came, Donghyuck hurriedly got out of bed and got dressed, ready to run away from the nightmares haunting him in the dark. The jittering sensation he could feel from head to toe was unsettling. He needed to find out who he was going to Drift with. He needed confirmation that Mark got in.

Walking into the cafeteria, the first thing he did was to check the time. Half past seven. It was still too early for the place to be crowded with Rangers and LOCCENT techs, meaning it was still too early for the news about the chosen candidates to reach him. He sighed and went to buy a sandwich before making his way over usual table. 

When he saw a shadow looming over him, he didn’t bother looking up; it was either Renjun or Dongyoung anyway. “What?”

“Can I sit here?”

The voice sent Donghyuck jolting upright and he choked on his sandwich. Abruptly swallowing, he looked up from his pathetic excuse of a breakfast set – a plain sandwich and a glass of vitamin water. “Mark?”

The other boy grinned, evidently happier than he was the previous day but Donghyuck didn’t know why. It did more to remind Donghyuck about the excessive questions he had wanted to ask. And Donghyuck was never the type to beat around the bush; if Mark wasn’t going to say anything, he was.

“You looked really sad yesterday,” Donghyuck went straight to the point. Also, he figured that starting with something recent would be better to start off a conversation with someone who seemed like just a memory from the past. “Why?”

“You were good yesterday. Good as ever,” Mark skilfully avoided the question, a habit of his whenever he found Donghyuck being too nosy. Donghyuck knew; he had seen it in the Drift before. 

Still, it annoyed Donghyuck to no end whenever Mark dodged his questions on purpose as if he was shooting him with a plasma cannon. But this time, Donghyuck felt no annoyance. Instead, he felt that same strange sense of warmth and comfort he felt yesterday when Mark said his name. It was a foreign feeling Donghyuck wasn’t sure if he could adjust to so he started to feel uneasy. 

He shifted uncomfortably in his seat and lowered his head, bangs falling just above his eyes. The space between them suddenly felt too suffocating and the deafening silence of the cafeteria did little in breaking the air of tension surrounding them which Donghyuck had unknowingly created.

This wasn’t working out and Donghyuck wanted to leave. Mark seemed to have noticed that however and placed his palm over Donghyuck’s resting one on the table. 

_His hands are bigger_, Donghyuck noted absentmindedly and was hit by a pang of familiarity and sadness as he remembered that he hadn’t been with Mark for the past two years. He had really missed out on so much and he didn’t have anyone to blame but himself. It was him who had unintentionally chased Mark away after all. When he had chosen his best friend, he hadn’t expected Mark to stay. It was too selfish of him if he even thought about it. So he chose to let go; and when he chose to let go, he lets go completely. Mark’s arrival had thrown him off his axis. 

“You want to know why I was sad?” 

When Donghyuck looked up this time, he was slightly surprise to see Mark’s face, completely void of emotion. And what scared him was how he couldn’t read it. Mark had created a barrier while they had been separated and Donghyuck honestly didn’t blame him but he couldn’t help feeling a wave of disappointment rushing over him like tidal waves crashing against the rocks at the shore. 

Donghyuck nodded slowly, uncertain about his curiosity now that Mark was going to give him a response. He wasn’t sure what he should say or what he could say. It felt like he was walking on thin ice, like they both were, and neither party wanted to take a step forward in case they were plunged into freezing water.

“Why don’t you look for your answer,” Mark paused on purpose – Donghyuck knew – a hint of mischief now sparkling in his eyes, replacing the empty void which occupied them previously while his lips curved up slightly. 

“What?” Donghyuck groaned. He enjoyed playing guessing games as much as the next person, but more so when he was the one confusing others.

“Why don’t you look for your answer,” Mark repeated, his voice more firm this time.

“In the Drift.” Two voices sounded at the same time and Donghyuck knew exactly who the two people were – it was him and Mark. It felt like they connected at that moment. Like Ghost Drifting.

There was a flash of surprise in Mark’s eyes as those three words left Donghyuck’s mouth, like he wasn’t expecting Donghyuck’s words to overlap with his. Then, his expression shifted to that of emotionless again. “I’ll see you during the Drift Compatibility tests.”

And with that, Mark up and left, leaving Donghyuck alone with his thoughts.

But not for long.

Renjun quickly walked over and settled opposite Donghyuck, nudging his friend to get his attention. “What was that about?”

Donghyuck found himself speechless so he shrugged, hanging his head low because he didn’t want to meet Renjun’s concerned eyes. 

Somehow, at that moment, Donghyuck thought that he wouldn’t be able to Drift with Mark. 

*****

“Rangers chosen for the Drift Compatibility test, please report to LOCCENT right now.” The voice which came through the speaker in the cafeteria sounded static but it was no doubt, the voice of Marshal Moon’s. 

Donghyuck glanced around the area and realised how spaced out he must have been not to notice the amount of people flooding the place. He looked down at his unfinished breakfast set and groaned when his conversation with Mark resurfaced in his mind.

The more he thought about the other, the more annoyed he felt, irrationally so. “Why don’t you look for your answer,” Donghyuck mimicked Mark before pausing dramatically. He narrowed his eyes and straightened his back. “In the Dr -”

Before he could finish his monologue, someone was shouting into his ear. “Rangers, report to LOCCENT _right now_.”

“Renjun,” Donghyuck deadpanned, whipping his head towards his friend. “What is it now?”

Renjun threw him a dirty look. “Rangers, report to LOCCENT right now?”

Maybe Donghyuck was really disorientated at the moment or that conversation he had with Mark really sent him into oblivion and beyond. So he settled with staring at Renjun with a clueless expression on his face. 

This earned him an exasperated sigh from the other male. “Drift Compatibility test? Ever thought of piloting Golden Sunset again, Ranger Lee?”

At that, Donghyuck’s eyes widened significantly and he pushed himself off his chair before making a dash for the exit. 

Just as he was about to exit, someone stopped him. He turned around, clearly annoyed because he was _late_. He ignored Renjun’s shout from where he was just a few minutes ago and decided to focus his attention on the person who had stopped him.

“What?” Donghyuck said, sounding harsher than he had intended to. His facial expression softened when he realised it was Jaemin he was looking at. The boy looked a little shocked at Donghyuck’s outburst and that made Donghyuck feel guilty. “Jaemin,” he greeted happily, tone completely changing from before, though still sounding like he was in a rush. He stuffed his hands inside the pockets of his pants to act casual about it because he didn’t want to appear like he wanted to run to LOCCENT at that moment. He hadn’t had a proper conversation with his childhood friend since the latter had woken up. “What’s up?”

“I heard the announcement,” Jaemin explained though Donghyuck caught the apprehension in his voice. He chided himself mentally for appearing so angry and made a mental note to apologise properly later. “And I just wanted to wish you luck!” He ended with a non-too-lightly pat on Donghyuck’s back, causing him to stumble a little.

While thankful for Jaemin’s encouragement, Donghyuck also wanted to push the other back for making him _almost_ trip.

“Donghyuck,” Renjun called from behind him, voice low and dangerous.

“You should go,” Jaemin whispered in a conspiring tone to Donghyuck who nodded gravely.

Ignoring the idiocy happening in front of him, Renjun gripped Donghyuck’s arm and started dragging him away but not before apologising to Jaemin for disrupting their moment and muttering something about _your stupid friend is late_.

“That was very rude,” Donghyuck said when they entered the lift. “I was talking to my childhood friend who,” he raised his hand to stop Renjun from saying anything and continued in a louder voice to make sure Renjun didn’t try interrupting again, “had been in a coma for almost two years and who I haven’t had a chance to connect with properly again even after he had woken up because I’ve been so busy with recovering and finding a new co-pilot.”

Renjun rolled his eyes. Even without looking, he knew that Donghyuck was pouting. “For goodness sake, you’re _late_.”

Still sulking, Donghyuck leaned against the side of the lift, allowing Renjun to haul him up to stand straight. “Why are you here anyway?”

“I’m in LOCCENT, remember?” Renjun asked, sarcasm dripping from his voice.

“Oh yeah.”

It took Renjun every inch of control at that moment to stop himself from landing a blow on Donghyuck’s face. 

As soon as the lift doors opened, Donghyuck was dragged out of it by Renjun who simply ignored all his protests of _you’re gripping me too tightly, let go!_

“Sorry that we’re late,” Renjun immediately said upon entering LOCCENT.

Marshal Moon had a stern look on his face; the crease of his eyebrows told Donghyuck that he was going to be in deep trouble but that was a common situation which Donghyuck often found himself in so he knew not to take it to heart.

“Sorry,” Donghyuck parroted and threw the Marshal a sheepish grin.

The Marshal only sighed as he ran a hand through his perfectly gelled hair. He gestured to the other people standing in the room, causing Donghyuck’s attention to shift onto them. “The candidates who made it to this part of the selection,” the Marshal introduced. 

Donghyuck scanned the few faces before nodding. 

“You know the procedures of this, right?” Dongyoung asked just for the sake of it. Donghyuck simply nodded in response. It was all protocol. “Then I won’t have to explain anything. You can go in the Conn-Pod when you’re ready.”

Without further ado, Donghyuck left his original spot and made his way to the Conn-Pod to get suited up for the test. The rest of it went by in a blur and after the number of times Dongyoung had said _the neural handshake failed_, Donghyuck started worrying that he might not be able to Drift with anyone; he might not be able to pilot Golden Sunset ever again.

Mark was the last candidate to enter the Conn-Pod. Suddenly, the Conn-Pod felt even smaller and the air felt stiller than before, the suit felt heavier and Donghyuck felt nauseous. 

“Relax.”

Donghyuck looked to his left to find Mark smiling at him. He felt an inexplicable sense of comfort staring into the depths of Mark’s black orbs.

“It’s just like last time.”

Before Donghyuck could say anything, Dongyoung’s voice came over the comm. “Initiating neural handshake.” He spared Mark one last glance before he focused on the screen in front of him.

And then suddenly, Donghyuck felt as if his head got yanked backwards and all what replaced his vision was a sea of blue and white and too blinding lights. 

Images rushed into Donghyuck’s head; Mark’s memories flooded his mind and he felt like he was drowning in them as scenes both familiar and unfamiliar to him flashed through his mind like a hurricane. 

They were together – laughing, then practicing, wooden sticks colliding, Mark’s face hovering over his on the floor of their shared, angry words exchanged before their lips touched, Mark’s back leaving the room growing farther and farther as Donghyuck’s vision became blurry with unshed tears, unspoken apologies, whispered confessions, broken promises, and then all of a sudden – a vivid memory.

_“Mark, I can’t be your partner anymore.”_

_Not caring that he was in the midst of doing a set of push-ups, Mark got off the mat, shock plastered on his face as he tried to take in the words spoken to him. A quiver in his bottom lip that Donghyuck hadn’t noticed in the past. “Wha – What?” He was clearly at a loss for words and his heartbeat sped up considerably. Sweat dripped down the side of his face and he swallowed – Donghyuck’s eyes traced the movement of his Adam’s apple. “Why?”_

_“Jaemin might not wake up and Jeno needs a new co-pilot.”_

_“Oh,” Mark breathed out, voice shaky. “Oh,” he repeated, breath evening out. “It’s…” _

_Donghyuck stared at the other boy with hopeful eyes to which Mark simply responded with a tight smile._

_“It’s okay, Donghyuck. I’ll wait for you.”_

_“Really?” Donghyuck’s eyes twinkled in delight as he pulled Mark into a hug. “I’m sorry. I’m really sorry but we’ll still pilot Golden Sunset together one day, I swear. Golden Sunset will get her chance to shine, just not now.”_

_“Wait.” Mark pushed Donghyuck off and stared at him. “You mean you’re not piloting Golden Sunset with Jeno? Then what are you…”_

_“Violet Destiny,” Donghyuck answered. “Golden Sunset’s meant for **us** remember?”_

_Remember? Remember? Remember? I won’t leave you, I prom—I knew you’d say that—Golden Sunset is ours—it’s okay, Donghyuck—Mark left for Sydney—it’s okay Donghyuck—I knew you’d say that—remember–didn’t he tell —we’re going to become the best rangers in hist—you don’t think I’m compatible with you—pilot Golden Sunset with you–I swear—Remember?_

“Mark, come back, you’re way out of alignment,” Dongyoung’s voice sounded muffled over the comm but even so, Donghyuck could tell that he was worried. 

“Mark,” Donghyuck tried. “Mark, it’s me. Stay with me, come back.”

All of a sudden, Donghyuck got thrown back into reality; he was aware of his surroundings again – he was back at the Conn-Pod and out of the Drift. He took a moment to compose himself before turning wearily to his side. “Mark…?”

Shock and fear was written clearly all over Mark’s face and if Donghyuck squinted, he could see a bead of sweat rolling down the corner of his face. 

“The neural handshake was a no-go guys, I’m sorry.”

And Dongyoung really did sound apologetic but who could they blame? 

“Mark?” 

“I’m sorry,” Mark whispered, barely audible but in the Conn-Pod, it sounded like an echo instead. “I’m sorry.”

“I didn’t know – ”

“It’s okay, Donghyuck.”

It was as if Mark had stabbed Donghyuck in the heart with those three all too familiar words. He never knew how badly it had affected Mark when he gave him up for Jeno. He always assumed that Mark would be fine with it. The golden boy amongst the Rangers, he could take anything and everything. And that was what Donghyuck had sincerely believed in – that Mark could cope with _anything_ and _everything_ thrown his way. Even if it meant being abandoned by his partner.

Jeno couldn’t. So Donghyuck had known the choice he had to make. Or at least he thought he had known.

But no, Mark couldn’t handle Donghyuck leaving him. And the realisation only then made Donghyuck feel like he was drowning in the ocean with no one around to save him.

He spared Mark one more worried glance before stepping out of the Conn-Pod and then it hit him. It wasn’t intentional that he had piloted Golden Sunset with Jeno, but it wasn’t his fault either. He believed that Golden Sunset was theirs – his and Mark’s – until Jeno told him that he couldn’t pilot Violet Destiny without Jaemin. It was just the way Violet Destiny was configured (stupid, Donghyuck had thought at that time) so they had ended up piloting Golden Sunset together. Mark must have had seen them fighting on the television before at the Sydney Shatterdome. He must have seen the headlines on the newspapers.

At the thought of Mark finding out that Golden Sunset _had been_ in commission all the while, the colour from Donghyuck’s face drained away, turning a sickly white. He tried not to wonder about Mark’s feelings of betrayal. It probably felt like a knife stabbed into his back and that he was drowning in an ocean too, except he was really all alone when Donghyuck still had Jeno.

_Why don’t you look for your answer in the Drift?_

*****

“I didn’t know. I really didn’t know.”

“I don’t know why you’re telling me this.” Renjun threw Donghyuck an unimpressed look before it morphed into disgust after looking at the food they were serving at the cafeteria that day. “You guys couldn’t Drift, so what?”

“So what?” Donghyuck repeated. “So what?” he hissed. “So that means I’m not Drift Compatible with him anymore. That means we can’t be co-pilots. That means we can’t pilot a Jaeger together.” He paused when he felt a hiccup coming. “That means we can’t…we can’t…” Donghyuck’s voice grew shakier with each word and he could feel his breath hitching. He only continued when he felt that saying the next sentence wouldn’t bring tears to his eyes. “That means we can’t pilot Golden Sunset together.” 

He received a look of pity from Renjun and he wanted to tell Renjun to stop because he didn’t need pity. He needed Mark.

“I heard they were sending the Rangers back though. Getting new ones in.”

Donghyuck paled instantly. “They can’t.”

“Yes,” Renjun began firmly as he looked Donghyuck in the eye. “They _can_,” he made sure to punctuate each word slowly and clearly in hopes that he could get this simple message across. Though he also knew how bull-headed Donghyuck was and it would take more than clarity in his speech to get his message through Donghyuck’s thick skull.

“I won’t do it.” Donghyuck broke eye contact and looked away, not daring to look Renjun in the eye any longer as if the flame of sincerity in Renjun’s eyes telling him how true his words were could burn him. 

A soft noise of disapproval came from Renjun’s direction but Donghyuck didn’t care, he continued avoiding Renjun’s gaze (and reality). “You don’t have a choice.”

“I won’t pilot Golden Sunset with anyone but Mark,” Donghyuck said, a tone of finality resounding in his heart.


	2. Conquering Fears

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> \- i changed the summary because i finally thought of something  
\- i also changed the rating from general to mature because...it just happened  
\- this is just 1k of markhyuck making out but i wrote that at 1am so forgive me

The morning would have been great for Renjun if Lee Donghyuck had not started shooting him with strings of questions regarding the new Rangers and about what would happen to the other Rangers who had failed to become his co-pilot. 

“Will they really be sent away? Can’t they stay and train?” Donghyuck trailed after Renjun like a lost puppy around the cafeteria as the latter picked out his breakfast while ignoring Donghyuck. “They could stay, right? Technically. I mean it would be such a shame and a waste to just send them away like that. They could stay to, you know, train. With one another. With me again, maybe? There’re so many things – ” 

“Stop babbling. It’s too early for this,” Renjun moaned, covering his eyes with one hand as he blindly reached for a sandwich with the other. It turned into a pathetic sob when Donghyuck ignored his plea and continued rambling on about things which Renjun couldn’t even understand because Donghyuck incoherent in the morning.

“Donghyuck,” Renjun said, tone bordering on threatening. “Speak slowly. It’s too early,” he repeated.

An exasperated huff escaped Donghyuck’s lips as he took a sit opposite Renjun when the LOCCENT technician finally went to a table. “What’s going to happen to the other Rangers?” 

“Sent back to where they came from.”

“Lies.”

Renjun shot a glare in Donghyuck’s direction, clearly annoyed. “Lies? Here I am helping you, breaking LOCCENT’s protocols, going out of my way to dig out classified information for you and all you can say is _lies_. I’m really disappointed in you, Donghyuck.”

A frown slowly settled on Donghyuck’s face as he digested what Renjun had just said. Maybe he shouldn’t have been so straightforward but Renjun also wasn’t looking into classified information and he most definitely didn’t have to dig for any sort of information at all. Information travelled to him; he was that guy whom everyone went to with the newest information and gossip alike.

Knowing that Renjun wasn’t going to tell him anything anyway if he continued arguing with him, Donghyuck leaned back into his seat, shoulders deflating in defeat. With a hand, he lifted Renjun’s plate of roll cakes and stretched his arm forward, offering Renjun the desert as a token of apology.

“They’re mine,” Renjun hissed, grabbing the plate from Donghyuck’s hand and placing it onto the table.

Looking to the side, Donghyuck tapped his fingers against the table absentmindedly, wondering where Mark was.

“Why did you say I was lying?” Renjun asked suddenly. 

Donghyuck turned back to face Renjun. “A little bird told me that some Rangers were staying.” Donghyuck was trying to be as honest as possible – he really was trying – but he couldn’t possibly tell Renjun he woke up earlier that day to sit outside the Marshal’s office to spy and eavesdrop on the conversation between Marshal Moon and Dongyoung right? 

“Some Rangers,” Renjun echoed as he took a bite of the roll cake while staring pointedly at Donghyuck. “_Some_ Rangers.”

“Mark?” Donghyuck tried hesitantly.

“Mark.” Renjun nodded in affirmation. “Are you happy about it?”

“I guess,” Donghyuck admitted softly. He wasn’t happy about the whole not-being-able-to-Drift-with-Mark situation but he wasn’t exactly sad about it either.

But at least now they might have a chance together again, as unlikely as it might be. They weren’t Drift Compatible anymore but Mark staying on in the L.A. Shatterdome and training _might_ make them suitable for each other again. But it was a very big ‘might’.

Would the Marshal even allow them to do another test? Or was Donghyuck going to be able to Drift with one of the new candidates instead? Though wouldn’t that mean he wouldn’t be able to pilot Golden Sunset with Mark anymore because he would have a new partner? Would Mark find a new partner? Thoughts ran through Donghyuck’s mind and he started drumming his fingers against the table again until Renjun stopped him.

“Stop thinking so much.” 

Donghyuck moved to sit in an upright position, taking both of Renjun’s hands and staring deep into his eyes. “I want to do another Drift compatible – ”

“Impossible.”

“With Mark again,” Donghyuck continued as if Renjun hadn’t said anything to interrupt him. “I want to try Drifting with – ”

“No,” Renjun cut Donghyuck off sharply the second time. “You can’t. They won’t let you. You guys aren’t the only pair who used to be able to Drift together in the past but not anymore, you know? There’re other Rangers like that too. You guys Drifted well together but that was also a long time ago. Maybe you guys just aren’t Drift Compatible anymore. Suck it up, Donghyuck.” He fixed Donghyuck with a pointed look. “Find a new partner and pilot Golden Sunset with him or her. You don’t want to see Golden Sunset going to another Ranger do you? Isn’t Golden Sunset your baby or something?”

“It’s _our_ baby.” If Donghyuck wasn’t so caught up in his thoughts, he wouldn’t have said something like that. “Mine and Mark’s. So,” he slammed his palms on the table, earning a few annoyed looks from other tables. “I’m going to talk to the Marshal and get him to schedule another Drift Compatibility Test with Mark again.”

Renjun scoffed. “Get him. You make it sound like the Marshal is your friend and will listen to your every request.”

At that, Donghyuck’s eyes lit up and Renjun’s _this isn’t good_ senses started to tingle. “Oh, Renjun, you’re right. The Marshal isn’t my friend. But Dongyoung is,” he ended it off with a mischievous smirk and Renjun groaned.

“Please stop bothering my boss. You’re shortening his lifespan every time you give him some unreasonable request.” Renjun closed his eyes and started massaging his temples because he felt an oncoming headache – a very painful headache – and it was all Donghyuck’s fault. “Just please don’t ask – ” Then he came to an abrupt stop when he opened his eyes because Donghyuck was nowhere to be found. “Donghyuck,” he whined to no one before jumping to his feet and running towards the direction of LOCCENT, breakfast long forgotten.

*****

“Dongyoung!”

“Donghyuck,” Dongyoung greeted calmly without even turning to face the other. “What is it now?”

“I want another Drift Compatibility Test with Mark.” There, straight to the point.

“No.” 

The reply was quick, causing Donghyuck to scowl and he walked over to the unoccupied seat next to Dongyoung and sat down. “Why not?” He demanded.

It earned him a sigh from Dongyoung but nothing more. Wanting a proper answer, Donghyuck placed his hands on Dongyoung’s shoulders to force the older of the two to face him. Though he was met with some resistance at first, Dongyoung gave up eventually and turned to face Donghyuck fully.

“No means no,” Dongyoung replied. “I don’t call the shots anyway. The Marshal does and we both know that he’ll never agree. A failed test is a failed test, Donghyuck. You and Mark aren’t Drift Compatible. Face it.”

“But we are,” Donghyuck argued back stubbornly.

“Were,” Dongyoung corrected sternly, fixing a hard stare on Donghyuck but it wasn’t scaring the latter off. “You guys were Drift Compatible but not anymore. Three years passed, things changed and you guys aren’t Drift Compatible anymore.”

“But I – I just – ” Donghyuck fumbled for words to find but he found none. “Just.” He bit his lower lip. “Please.”

He must have sounded pretty desperate or pathetic or both because Dongyoung’s gaze on him softened before he sighed again.

“I don’t call the shots here. But I honestly do want to see you and Mark piloting Golden Sunset one day. I really do.” His eyes were so full sincerity that Donghyuck couldn’t doubt him. Not one single bit. It wasn’t something that Donghyuck hadn’t already known though. “Only the Marshal can decide this and like I said, we both know he won’t allow another test. I’m sorry, Donghyuck.”

“Maybe you could try talking to the Marshal?” Another voice joined in from behind – Renjun.

“Renjun!” Donghyuck exclaimed happily as he walked towards Renjun with his arms wide open, ready to welcome his friend with a hug.

Renjun dodged him and continued walking towards Dongyoung. “The Marshal might listen to you?”

Donghyuck turned back to look and Dongyoung with his saddest eyes. “Please help me, Dongyoung.”

They engaged in a staring competition but Donghyuck never lost a battle, especially not to Dongyoung. Eventually, Dongyoung groaned and broke eye contact before turning to glare at Donghyuck again. That was when Donghyuck knew he had gotten what he wanted. And that was all it took for Donghyuck to pull Dongyoung into a hug and thanking him profusely.

“I love you, Dongyoung!” 

“Don’t need it,” Donghyuck replied wryly.

“I’m sorry for bothering you, Dongyoung.” Donghyuck then pulled Renjun towards the door with him.

_You don’t mean it_, Dongyoung thought but smiled at Donghyuck anyway and thanked the heavens as soon as Donghyuck and Renjun were out of his sight. “You owe me big time, Donghyuck,” Dongyoung muttered as he got up from his seat.

*****

“Mark!” Donghyuck called out, stopping Mark in his tracks and causing a few heads to turn. “Where are you going now?”

Mark eyed Donghyuck curiously. “The combat room.” A pause. “Why?”

“I’ll go with you,” Donghyuck announced a little too gleefully. “I’ll train with you.”

“Shouldn’t you be training with other Rangers?” Mark pointed out, eyes narrowed slightly. “For your next Drift Compatibility test, you know?”

When Donghyuck didn’t give an answer, Mark started to study the other’s expression. “What did you do?” Mark asked, tone accusing.

“Nothing!” Donghyuck quickly said in defence. “I swear.”

“You have that look you always have when you do something out of line.” Again, Donghyuck didn’t reply, but he didn’t have the decency to look guilty either and Mark grinned in victory, knowing that he was right. “You know I’m not going back to Sydney?”

“That’s classified.” With that, Donghyuck continued walking towards the combat room and Mark simply followed, like he always used to.

The walk was silent until Mark decided to say something right when they were standing outside the combat room. Just as Donghyuck was about to enter the room, Mark blocked his path.

“It’s not classified,” Mark started and Donghyuck knew exactly what the other was talking about but he feigned ignorance and stared at the younger boy with a confused face. “Don’t give me that kind of bullshit, Donghyuck. How the hell can it be classified? Knowing you, you probably listened in on a conversation you weren’t supposed to.”

This got Donghyuck grinning, leaving Mark perplexed.

“Exactly,” Donghyuck said while patting Mark’s shoulder like he just did a job well done. “You know me so well. Now get out of my way and get in the combat room with me to train.”

“I don’t know what you’re up to, Donghyuck,” Mark muttered wearily but he stepped out of Donghyuck’s way anyway and walked in after him.

“That’s because I’m not up to anything,” came Donghyuck’s simple answer. “Come on, I know you want to train with me. I know you’re _dying_ to feel our wooden staffs clash against one another again.”

_No I don’t_, Mark wanted to argue back but Donghyuck was already walking towards the training equipment. He wasn’t prepared for the staff to be thrown his way but he caught it.

Looking at the staff, confused, Mark stared at Donghyuck. “What’s this?” Mark gestured to the wooden rod with his free hand. “I’m not training with you, Donghyuck.”

“You want to.” Spinning the staff with one hand, Donghyuck eyed Mark from top to bottom.

Mark didn’t even realise he had gotten onto the training mat but he wasn’t too bothered about it, taking on a defensive stance on instinct. “I’m going to transfer to LOCCENT.”

“No you’re not,” Donghyuck replied harshly with an equally painful strike against Mark’s abdomen. 

The groan Mark let slip seemed to have attracted a lot of attention because an audience started forming around them.

“Get up, Mark,” Donghyuck hissed as he adjusted his grip and circled Mark like a predator would to a prey.

No one expected the next blow to come from Mark because he looked like he was really in pain and struggling to even get up. But he went from lying flat on the ground to a crouching position too quickly for anyone to even see properly and swung his staff in one big motion, throwing Donghyuck off his feet. “1-1.”

“It’s all about fakes and bluffs when it comes to you right, Mark?” Donghyuck said through gritted teeth and pushed himself up with his legs in one swift motion.

“Oh yeah?” Mark bit back. “It’s all about predictability for you right, _Donghyuck_.”

“That’s because,” Donghyuck started calmly while twirling his staff a little. “You’re so predictable.” Then he sprinted forward and attempted to strike Mark’s shoulder which he missed but as soon as he regained his footing, he spun around and landed a blow on the other’s back.

It was some sort of a miracle that Mark didn’t fall from the impact or even show any sign of pain or discomfort. He merely gripped his staff tighter and without turning around to face Donghyuck, he swung his left arm out, the staff seemingly an extension of it as the end struck Donghyuck’s rib, sending him sprawling on the floor once again. “You’re one to talk about predictability.”

A crowd had long gathered around them and initially, people had been muttering, placing bets on who would win (Donghyuck) but now they were silent because they weren’t so sure anymore.

“Get up, Donghyuck,” Mark mocked, face twisting into a sardonic smile.

There was a stinging sensation in Donghyuck’s right foot but he ignored it and focused all of his energy into getting back onto his feet. “Don’t mock me, Mark Lee.”

Another blow landed on Mark not long after and soon, Mark managed to hit Donghyuck again. They were tied once more. Three to three.

The match went on in the same fashion for a while; every time Donghyuck landed a blow on Mark, putting himself in the lead, Mark would counter almost immediately, bringing them to a standstill. They both didn’t know how much time had passed but neither of them made an attempt to throw in the towel. They were both too stubborn and by that point in time, they both wanted to win.

Donghyuck knew that it was only a matter of time before his ankle gave out but until then, he wasn’t going to give up.  
Mark looked like he was about to take a step in front and thrust his staff forward but Donghyuck knew better and jumped instead, smiling to himself, satisfied, when Mark crouched down and swiped his staff over the mat in a semi-circle where Donghyuck’s legs should have been. Before Donghyuck could counter Mark’s move, the other already saw it coming.

He dodged Donghyuck’s staff splendidly by sliding under the his arm while swinging his staff at the same time, hitting Donghyuck’s right leg and nearly causing him to fall. But Donghyuck caught himself quickly and managed to hold his balance.

“14 - 13,” Mark breathed out haughtily with a lazy smirk on his face. “I’m in the lead now.”

“Not for long,” Donghyuck replied harshly and took a step forward.

It was only a moment but Mark caught it; the pained expression on Donghyuck’s face when the latter put his right foot out. Focusing on Donghyuck’s right foot Mark groaned internally when he saw the purplish bruise blossoming around the other’s ankle. Just as he was about to call for an end, Donghyuck leaped towards him with the staff above his head, ready to strike him square on the shoulder. But Mark was quicker and he technically had a handicap since Donghyuck was injured, so he avoided it while striking the back of Donghyuck’s left knee at the same time.

“15 - 13,” Mark growled out. He was starting to get angry at Donghyuck. When he saw Donghyuck struggling to get back onto his feet, the anger swelled. “Give up.”

“No way,” Donghyuck hissed through gritted teeth.

“Why the fuck are you always so stubborn?” Mark shouted. “Why are you always like this? Just give – ”

“That’s enough.” A voice boomed through the combat room, attracting everyone’s attention. It was Marshal Moon. “That’s enough, Rangers.”

Ever the polite and proper Ranger Donghyuck was, he went to the center of the mat and waited for Mark to occupy the spot opposite him before he gave a curt bow which Mark followed a few beats late.

“Two weeks later in the Conn-Pod. 8am _sharp_.” Then the Marshal stalked out of the combat room with folded hands behind his back.

Dongyoung gave Donghyuck a thumbs up and mouthed _good job_ before he was leaving as well and Donghyuck grinned proudly. All the adrenaline from the match just a few moments before was now gone, replaced by pure fatigue and a dull ache running throughout his whole body, a piercing pain in his right foot.

He felt himself losing balance and he didn’t have the strength to hold himself up anymore. Eyes closed, Donghyuck braced himself for the impact of falling face flat onto his face and readied himself for a bloodied and broken nose. Instead, he felt a pair of strong arms encircling his waist to hold him up, his nose colliding with a study chest. It wasn’t as bad as breaking his nose but it still hurt.

“Careful.” Mark’s breath tickled the shell of Donghyuck’s ears, causing the latter’s breath to hitch at their close proximity. “Idiot.”

With uncoordinated movements, Donghyuck managed to pull himself up, arms resting on Mark’s shoulders that did little to support himself while the latter’s arms were still wrapped around his waist. “Idiot?”

“You sprained your right foot from the second fall, didn’t you?” Mark asked in confirmation, making Donghyuck look away.

Donghyuck felt Mark’s fingers on his chin, gently turning his face back and his heart ached at the memory of how Mark used to jokingly push his face away whenever he stared at him (especially when they both knew how much Mark actually wanted to kiss him).

“You’re injured. You shouldn’t have continued. All just for another Test? Don’t be stu – ”

“Let go of me,” Donghyuck muttered, trying to push Mark’s hands away but to no avail.

“I said don’t be stupid,” Mark repeated, making sure that Donghyuck heard him loud and clear. “You’re just wasting your time, my – ”

“I said let go of me.”

“Time. You’re wasting everyone’s time.”

“Fuck you, Mark,” Donghyuck snapped, finally pushing Mark away, shifting his weight onto his left foot to keep himself up. “I’m not the reason we couldn’t Drift the last time. I’m not the one who latched onto a dead memory which I didn’t even know you were so hung up about.”

“Easy for you to say.” Mark raised his voice for the first time he had stepped into the room. “You’re the one who left!” He shouted back. “Hung up on a dead memory? It’s still as fresh as day to me.”

“I just want to try Drifting with you again, Mark! Why is that so hard to understand?” Donghyuck tried to kick Mark in the shin but as soon as he moved forward, he almost lost his balance. And again, Mark caught his hand in time to prevent his fall. “Let go,” Donghyuck grumbled while trying to break free from Mark’s iron grip. “Let go of me.”

Then all of a sudden, he was lifted off the ground.

“Don’t carry me!” Donghyuck shrieked, pushing at Mark’s face. “Put me down, Mark Lee! You infuriating Canadian. Put me down now. Now.” Donghyuck tried mustering his most commanding and authoritative voice ever and all Mark did was to give him a blank stare before he started walking.

Donghyuck tried to stifle his sobs by pressing his face against Mark’s chest.

*****

The pack of ice pressed against Donghyuck’s ankle helped to soothe the injury but it did nothing to ease the ache in Donghyuck’s chest. In fact, the ice was making his heart hurt more. Not because it was actually damaging or anything like that but because Mark was the one pressing the pack of ice against his ankle.

Honestly, Donghyuck had expected Mark to just dump him on his bed, literally, before walking away so that he wouldn’t waste any more of his time. But Mark had stayed.

Mark had stayed and had asked Donghyuck what he needed – water or ice or both.

“There’s ice in the fridge,” Donghyuck had replied, numb in shock.

Then Mark had taken the ice pack and knelt beside the bed where Donghyuck was sitting and without any warning, pressed it against Donghyuck’s ankle, making the latter hiss in pain. And Mark, Mark Lee had actually _apologised_ before gently rubbing the spot with the ice pack.

It had all made Donghyuck more or less dizzy to say the least.

Staring at Mark, Donghyuck lost himself in his mind again. But he quickly found himself and decided that Mark needed to leave his room for his own sake. For both their sakes.

Clearing his throat, Donghyuck tried catching Mark’s attention but all Mark was looking at was his damn ankle. “Mark,” Donghyuck said softly because he was certain that Mark could hear him. The room was dead silent and there was only the two of them there. Mark couldn’t have missed it.

But apparently, Mark did.

So Donghyuck called him again. And again.

Three times the charm, or so old saying went.

As Donghyuck was about to kick Mark in the face with his injured foot just to get his attention, Mark turned to him.

“Don’t even think about it,” Mark said, sounding too solemn to Donghyuck’s liking.

“Then don’t ignore me, you asshole.”

Sighing, Mark went back to tending to Donghyuck’s ankle. Gently.

“You were crying,” Mark pointed out.

“No, I wasn’t,” Donghyuck insisted and Mark simply hummed, not wanting to argue any further. Exasperated, Donghyuck shifted, moving to stand up and go somewhere, anywhere, just as long as he wasn’t in the same room as Mark, as long as Mark wasn’t icing his damn foot. But one look from Mark made him stay seated.

So he decided to talk instead. Couldn’t run away forever.

“You don’t have to say anything. Just listen to me.” Donghyuck knew he told Mark that he didn’t have to talk, but he still waited for a response before continuing.

“I’m listening.”

“I don’t think it’s a waste of time,” Donghyuck began. He paused, watching Mark for a reaction but the other Ranger didn’t even so much as flinch. “I don't think it’s a waste of time,” he repeated as he gathered his thoughts. “Trying out the Drift Compatibility test again isn’t a waste of time. It’s not a waste of mine, at least. And I sincerely hope you don't think it’s a waste of your time either.”

“Donghyuck,” Mark said, sounding resigned. He put the ice pack down and looked up at Donghyuck as he shifted into a cross-legged position. “I didn’t mean to say that it was a waste of my time. I just don’t want _you_ wasting your time. You’ve piloted a Jaeger, a real Jaeger. You’ve piloted Golden Sunset. You’ve killed Kaijus. You’ve saved lives. You’re a hero, Lee Donghyuck.” A smile slipped onto Mark’s face, but it was a sad smile. “And me? I'm just me. A failed Ranger who can’t even Drift with anyone. I’m a – ”

Donghyuck’s hand flew to cover Mark’s mouth. “Shut up, Mark. You are you. But you’re not a failure so don’t you dare say that about yourself.”

Slim fingers circled Donghyuck’s wrist and Donghyuck allowed Mark to pull his hand away.

“You’re my partner, Mark and no one can say otherwise.” There was a lump forming in Donghyuck’s throat, his stomach filled with knots, twisting uncomfortably. “I’m sorry.” His voice cracked. “I’m sorry for choosing Jeno over you. Jeno had just lost Jaemin then. He had lost a partner and I wasn’t thinking. I wasn’t thinking or considering the fact that we were both going to lose a partner too. I’m sorry, Mark. I’m sorry and I miss you.”

Tears stained his cheeks and Donghyuck tried wiping them away but there were too many fallen pearls to catch.

“I tried not to think about it. About you. About us. About everything that went down. You left for Sydney so suddenly and you didn’t even say a word. I thought you hated me.” Donghyuck’s shoulders were shaking but as soon as Mark held onto his hand, he calmed down considerably. “I always thought that it was a temporary thing. Jeno and I. Until Jaemin woke up, I kept telling myself that. Until Jaemin woke up. But no one knew how long it was going to take but I was sure that Jaemin would wake up soon. I was so sure. And I was positive that I could go back to you soon. But then you left. You had left so suddenly I didn’t know how to reach out to you.”

“Donghyuck. Donghyuck,” Mark interrupted, squeezing Donghyuck’s hand to get his attention.

Glassy eyes full of unshed tears stared into Mark’s own crystal clear ones.

“I didn’t hate you. Not at all. But I couldn’t stand being in the L.A. Shatterdome anymore. I was alone. I didn’t know what I was training for. I didn’t know how long it would take for Jaemin to wake up. I had to leave but I never hated you, Donghyuck. I could never hate you.” Hand reaching to the side of Donghyuck’s face, Mark smoothed his thumb over the other’s cheekbone. “How could you ever think that I hated you?” There was that sad smile on Mark’s face again and all Donghyuck wanted to do was to kiss it away. “But you broke my heart. You broke it into millions of pieces when I saw you piloting Golden Sunset with Jeno on the T.V.. The resentment grew, I guess. That’s why I chased the rabbit.”

The tears had stopped. Taking Mark’s hand, Donghyuck pressed light, feathery kisses against his fingertips. “Let me fix it for you. I’ll fix your heart if you let me, Mark.”

“Don’t break it this time,” Mark said, voice so soft that it was barely a whisper.

Leaning forward, Donghyuck looked Mark in the eye. They were so close, so close that when Donghyuck spoke, his lips dragged against Mark’s. “Promise.”

Then their lips touched – Donghyuck wasn’t even sure who had closed the gap – soft at first, gently for a while, a long while. It was like kissing for the first time, getting to know each other again. Tentative. Slow. Tender. Careful not to rush. Careful not to go too far. Careful not to go too near to the edge of the cliff and fall.

Cupping Mark’s face, Donghyuck pulled him closer, just slightly, sighing into the kiss when he felt Mark’s arms looping around his waist. He could feel Mark adjusting, probably getting on his knees so that Donghyuck didn’t need to bend forward any longer.

Mark was kissing like Donghyuck was fragile, like he was a porcelain vase that would break any moment from the cracks decorating its sides. And it made Donghyuck’s heart ache because he should be the one comforting Mark. But the ache was good. The ache meant that he was alive. It meant that all this was real.

Him, Mark, kissing in the small enclosed space of his room without a care in the world.

His hands slid down to Mark’s shoulders, then slowly down his chest as he nudged Mark with a foot, the non-injured one.

Temporarily breaking the kiss, Mark stood up slowly, hands holding Donghyuck’s face, never breaking eye-contact.

“I miss you too,” Mark said belatedly, realising that he hadn’t told Donghyuck yet.

Hands gripping the front of Mark’s shirt, Donghyuck pulled him down for another kiss, their lips colliding painfully this time, teeth clashing, a sense of urgency in Donghyuck movements as he hooked his arms around Mark’s waist, bringing him closer and closer.

“Easy,” Mark laughed in between desperate kisses, only making Donghyuck whine in return.

Teeth catching on Mark’s bottom lip, Donghyuck sucked gently, releasing it before reconnecting their lips when he felt Mark pushing his shoulders back until his was lying on the bed, Mark pressing down above him, kissing back fervently, matching his desperation, maybe even more eagerly.

Mark smelt like sweat and it should be disgusting but it was a familiar smell and Donghyuck had been covered in sweat himself so he didn’t really care as he curled his hand behind Mark’s head, pushing it down to deepen the kiss. Mark obliged willing, allowing Donghyuck to kiss him fiercely until they were both almost out of breath. But they didn’t need the air.

Being wrapped up in one another’s arms had been something they had both been wishing for and now that they were finally together again, neither of them wanted to let go, fear of the other slipping through their fingertips if they didn’t hold on. But no one was going anywhere, not now at least. The kiss was raw, the kiss was real, and it was all they ever wanted for so long. No one was going to let go.

Soft moans filled the air as Mark started peppering kisses down the column of Donghyuck’s neck, mouth lingering on his pulse point, making him shudder involuntarily. Noting with delight that it was still Donghyuck’s sensitive spot, Mark pressed another kiss there before sucking the spot, lips curving into a grin when he felt the back of his shirt bunching up under Donghyuck’s tight grip.

Moving away, Mark didn’t get long to appreciate his handiwork – a small part of Donghyuck’s neck blossoming prettily in pink before Donghyuck pulled him back up for another kiss. It would probably turn into a mixed shade of purple and blue by the next day.

“Missed. You.” Donghyuck managed to say in between heated kisses. “So. Fucking. Much.”

And Mark hoped that Donghyuck could sense his feelings as strongly as he felt them in his heart through his kisses. Words weren’t enough to express how much Mark had missed Donghyuck. How much he had missed kissing him. How much he had missed holding him in his arms. How much had he missed Donghyuck’s honey voice saying his name softly, sweetly. How much he had missed the way Donghyuck turned into a mess under him _for him_, because of him.

Donghyuck liked it like this – when Mark was running his fingers through his hair, kissing him so feverishly like he wanted Donghyuck as much as Donghyuck wanted him, calling him by his name in a voice so low that it made Donghyuck’s toes curl in pleasure, sending a tingling sensation running all the way to his neck, making him sigh so sweetly like it was part of a melody.

The rest of the world faded into the background, faded away when Mark gently cupped Donghyuck’s face and caressed his cheeks tenderly, fingertips feathery and light against his skin, dancing and skittling all together.

Everything was starting to get messy, a bit rushed but it was familiar, it felt nice, it was what Donghyuck knew, and it was what he wanted. The rawness, the realness, he wanted it all. He wanted everything that Mark had to give and he was ready to give Mark as much if not more. It was all the apologies, the broken promises, the hope for a better, brighter future, all poured into Donghyuck’s desperate kisses, hoping that it was enough to convey all the guilt he felt, all the hours he spent missing Mark, all the lonely nights, all the agonising pain, and even a sliver of regret he felt for letting Mark go.

It was good. This was good. Donghyuck melted under Mark’s hands and ministrations, chanting _Mark, Mark, Mark_ on his lips when he closed his eyes, the back of his eyelids blinded with a white light, his whole body shivering as he came down from his high, panting softly into Mark’s ear, listening with anticipation for Mark to groan and collapse over him before he pressed a soft, chaste kiss to a random point between the bottom of Donghyuck’s ear and neck.

It was more than good. It was almost perfect.

There was just one catch.

They weren’t actually together. They hadn’t actually dated before.

*****

It was the morning of the second test and Donghyuck wasn’t ready. He didn’t think he would ever be ready for any tests that involved him and Mark. The sky was still dark and he guessed that it was probably only around 5 A.M. in the morning. A look to the clock hung on the wall confirmed his thoughts and that meant that he still had three hours to spare. Three long hours which he had absolutely no idea how to spend.

Subconsciously, he found his legs moving on their own accord, bringing him to the familiar quarters where his potential co-pilots were currently resting at. He should know which room Mark was in because the other had told him and he did know but in that moment, he wanted to run back to his room and shut the door. Let the world around him fade away. But his instinct stopped him. He sucked in a deep breath and walked towards Mark’s door.

Standing outside, memories unbidden flooded his mind as he remembered what happened the last time they were together in a room. He groaned and covered his face in embarrassment. No one was even around to witness his breakdown but he felt his cheeks colouring all the same. He didn’t bother knocking but he did push on the door lightly to check if it wasn’t locked. Thankfully (or not), the door swung open slightly. Sliding into the room from the small gap, Donghyuck gently shut the door, careful not to make any noise.

“Donghyuck?” There was a soft whisper from across the room causing Donghyuck to whip around, his heart beating fast in his chest. But he calmed down as soon as he saw that it was just Mark. Of course it would be Mark. Who else could it be? “What are you doing here?”

“Can’t sleep,” Donghyuck muttered as he padded over and sat down on the edge of the other’s bed. “You?”

A wry grin appeared on Mark’s face and Donghyuck didn’t like it too much. “You woke me up.”

“No way.”

“Yes,” Mark deadpanned, earning himself a soft whine from Donghyuck. Chuckling, Mark nudged Donghyuck with his foot to tell him that he was forgiven. “So, can’t sleep? Worried about the Drifting we’re about to do later on?” He wiggled his eyebrows to make Donghyuck feel less stressed out and the latter appreciated the sentiment but he couldn’t shake off the queasiness in his chest and stomach.

“It’s our last chance.”

Mark nodded thoughtfully, brows furrowed and lips pulled into a tight line. “You know back in Sydney, they had a pair of really kick-ass pilots.” He grinned at a certain memory surfacing in his head. When Donghyuck gestured for him to continue speaking, his grin widened. “There’s this Ranger called Jung Jaehyun. He Drifted well with two other people, namely Lee Taeyong and Seo Johnny. It was a rare occurrence. Rare but possible and it happened. Like you, Jeno, and Jaemin, you know?” A pregnant pause before Mark continued. “Johnny is his best friend but Taeyong was better in combat so who did you think he chose?”

“Johnny,” Donghyuck answered in a beat. He was familiar with this story.

“Now who did you think became his co-pilot?”

Donghyuck sighed before answering. He’s seen them on the television before. “Taeyong.” Mark nodded then Donghyuck frowned. “What are you trying to tell me, Mark?” He started drumming his fingers impatiently against his thigh.

“That maybe you should find another co- –”

Before Mark could complete his sentence, Donghyuck leaned forward to press their lips together to stop the other from talking. The kiss was short and chaste, nothing like the last time they kissed, but after Donghyuck pulled away, Mark found himself a little out of breath, like something in his system just short-circuited.

“I’m won’t pilot Golden Sunset with anyone but you.”

*****

“Is your leg is healing well?” inquired Marshal Moon as soon as Donghyuck stepped into the Conn-Pod and the latter simply gave the Marshal a firm nod and a small smile. “I heard you got it iced properly.”

“I – uhm,” Donghyuck stuttered unintelligently, unlike his usual quick and witty self as he started to blush, willing himself to get rid of certain images in his head, ignoring the way Mark choked on air, and wondering how in the hell Marshal Moon knew what had gone down in his room. Or maybe the Marshal was just making a general comment and he didn’t actually know what _had gone down_. “I did get it iced properly.”

When Donghyuck finally looked at Marshal Moon, he found the other staring at him quizzically.

“That’s good,” the Marshal said, still looking slightly befuddled with Donghyuck’s and Mark’s behaviour.

Then Donghyuck turned to face Mark. But before he could say anything, Mark was already talking.

“Relax.”

“It’s just like last time,” Donghyuck continued, remembering the words Mark had said the last time before they Drifted.

“Not quite like last time,” Mark reminded the older of the two gently with a wry smile. “Last time didn’t turn out so well, remember?” Last time they couldn’t Drift together and neither of them wanted a repeat. “Relax.” It was all Mark had to say but it wasn’t enough, not for Donghyuck.

“I am relaxed,” Donghyuck argued back stubbornly.

“See you in the Drift, Donghyuck.”

Once Donghyuck was suited up, he took in a deep breath, readying himself for the impact to hit him before he entered the Drift.

Static images of Mark’s memories passed by in a blur. It took a while for the pictures to become clearer but they eventually did and Donghyuck were seeing them in flashes. His own memory mixed with Mark’s.

And there was Mark playing in a garden being chased by a puppy and laughing with his hands thrown up, Mark sat in front of a television set watching Golden Sunset kill yet another Kaiju, the Sydney Shatterdome looked different but yet the same, the sound of wood against wood in the background as Mark gritted his teeth through his last set of push-ups, then Donghyuck appeared freshly out of the bath with his face still flushed and his hair dripping wet, a whisper – _Mark, faster_, two people laid down on the training mat side by side and out of breath, _“Neural handshake – ”_, the Conn-Pod lighting up when Mark entered, _“Hello, Ranger. I’m Donghyuck”_, a building was falling and falling and falling but it didn’t crash, it fell through a hole, disappearing as Mark’s face resurfaced in an unfamiliar, no, a familiar setting, Mark bent down towards Donghyuck’s sleeping form, _“sorry”_ and a lingering kiss to his forehead, fist against fist, then Donghyuck’s fist colliding against Mark’s face before the tray in his hands flew up, and then the same memory as the previous time.

_“It’s okay, Donghyuck. I’ll wait for you.”_

_“Really?”_

But Donghyuck wasn’t planning on losing Mark this time.

“Stay with me, Mark.” Donghyuck’s voice was surprisingly calm and steady but when there wasn’t a response from the other boy, it made Donghyuck panic. Though no one was telling them that their neural handshake was unsteady either, making Donghyuck feel slightly comforted. “Mark?” No response came. “Mark!”

“I’m here,” Mark breathed out shakily. “I’m here.”

Just the sound of Mark’s voice made Donghyuck feel a whole lot better. “Stay with me,” Donghyuck muttered. He didn’t have any intentions of letting Mark hear him but the other heard it anyway.

“I’m here.”

Never had Donghyuck felt more relieved than with the next words that left the Marshal’s lips.

“Neural handshake strong and holding.”

And that was all Donghyuck had wished for.

“You pervert,” Donghyuck scolded once they were the only ones left in the Conn-Pod, pushing Mark’s shoulder just for good measure. “Stop thinking about sex. It’s all I saw during the whole Drift process. It was like I was some narcissist watching some porno of myself with really bad connection.”

“Pretty sure that was your memory,” Mark said with a shrug, grinning at Donghyuck.

“Oh, really? Because I know how I look like stepping out of the shower after having sex in there when I’m not even looking in a mirror?”

“The imagination is a wild place,” Mark explained, earning him another push, this time to the chest before they both started laughing.

Then Mark stopped, staring at Donghyuck like he had something to say.

Eyes narrowed at Mark, Donghyuck lightly kicked his thigh. “Spit it out. I’ve heard everything.”

Swallowing, Mark looked away before asking his question. “That wasn’t really all you saw, right?”

“Obviously not.”

“What else did you see?”

Donghyuck didn’t say anything until he had Mark’s attention back on him. Then he smirked. “You running around like an idiot, flailing with your arms in the air as Chocolate chased you. What I saw two years ago.”

Mark scrunched up his nose. “I was playing with Chocolate.”

“The second time, yeah you were. But the first time, you thought Chocolate was going to bite you. Chocolate’s a _puppy_.”

Ignoring Donghyuck, Mark rolled his eyes but he shifted a little closer to the other Ranger. “And? What else did you see?”

Looking at Mark, Donghyuck’s eyes softened. He knew exactly what Mark was talking about. With a sigh, Donghyuck grabbed one of Mark’s hands. “You said goodbye. The day you were leaving for Sydney, you came to my room to say goodbye.”

Mark nodded – a wordless confirmation but it was all Donghyuck needed.

“Why didn’t you wake me up?” No, Donghyuck wasn’t accusing him. He just wanted to know. “I would have wanted to see you off. I would have asked you to stay.”

“Because I didn’t want either of that,” Mark replied tightly. “Because I didn’t want you to watch me leave. I didn’t want to stay. I didn’t want to leave you.”

Letting go of Mark’s hand, Donghyuck moved to kneel in front of him and held his face. “Mark,” he whispered before leaning in and sealing their lips.

They had become one again. One in the mind, one in the body, and one in the soul.

This was Golden Sunset.


	3. Conquering Hearts

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING: long-ish fight scenes here; mentions of blood, bones crushing (but nothing too graphic)

The sound of the siren blaring was both nerve-wrecking and exciting for Donghyuck. But it sounded more like death to Mark.

“Come on,” Donghyuck teased, playing with Mark’s earlobe. “We’re not going to _die_. We’re going to _kill_.” There was a glint of mischievousness in Donghyuck’s eyes and he exuded nothing but confidence.

It actually made Mark feel better about piloting Golden Sunset for the first time. Knowing that Donghyuck, his _co-pilot_, had actually piloted that colossal mass of a Jaeger before made Mark feel safe and secure. Knowing that he was going to be Drifting with Donghyuck in an actual battle made him happy. Everything was falling into place.

“Mark.” Donghyuck’s voice pulled Mark away from his thoughts. He gave Mark a lopsided smile, showing the latter two thumbs up when the other finally paid attention to him. “See you in the Drift!”

There was nothing exhilarating about getting suited up in a gigantic machine. Especially when you were about to go face a monster tens, and hundreds, and thousands of times the size of Namsan Tower. Absolutely nothing about going to battle a Kaiju should make anyone as happy as Donghyuck was.

“Why are you so excited again?” Mark questioned, raising a brow. “We’re about to go fight a Kaiju.”

“Yeah,” Donghyuck said. “_We_. It might be your first time officially piloting Golden Sunset but guess what?” He didn’t wait for an answer. “It’s my first time piloting Golden Sunset with you.”

With that and an extra smile for comfort, Donghyuck patted Mark on the shoulder before crossing the bridge over to enter Golden Sunset’s Conn-Pod. It took Mark a few more seconds before he was jogging over to Golden Sunset’s Conn-Pod as well.

“Took you long enough. We’ve got L.A. to save you know,” Donghyuck greeted as soon as Mark crossed the threshold leading to the Conn-Pod.

Now that Mark was inside the Jaeger, _their_ Jaeger, he was starting to feel the adrenaline pumping through his veins, making the tips of his fingers and toes tingly with anticipation. He was finally understanding how Donghyuck was feeling – or it might just be the nerves from the overwhelming feeling that he was going to pilot a Jaeger.

Grin never leaving his face, Donghyuck turned to Mark. “Ready?”

As soon as Mark nodded, Donghyuck’s fingers were flying over the control panel swiftly as if it was second nature to him. And the longer Mark stared at Donghyuck’s fingers moving quickly over the control panel, the more aware he became of the fact that this wasn’t Donghyuck’s first time piloting a Jaeger. It sent an uncomfortable feeling to his stomach, like someone had just landed a blow there. But he pushed it aside, turning back to face the front to concentrate on the monitor.

“Golden Sunset, ready for the drop,” Donghyuck announced cheerily.

“I am not ready for the drop,” Mark thought aloud, sending Donghyuck into fits of laughter.

“Quit fooling around,” came Dongyoung’s stern voice over their earpiece. “Concentrate guys. This isn’t a trial run, it’s the real thing. Destroy that monster.”

“When has Golden Sunset ever failed you,” Donghyuck mused, tone slightly mocking and Mark smiled. That was the Donghyuck he knew. For the past few weeks, ever since Donghyuck had been grounded, ever since Mark had come back, Donghyuck was a mess. The other boy wasn’t like himself; not how Mark remembered him anyway, and it had confused Mark. But now, it was like a switch in Donghyuck had been turned on simply by being in the Conn-Pod again. And not just any Conn-Pod but Golden Sunset’s one. It was like that switch brought Donghyuck back to life again.

That was the Donghyuck he knew.

The dropping sensation caused Mark’s stomach to lurch and he felt like puking but the awful feeling disappeared once he heard Donghyuck’s voice in his mind saying _breathe, Mark, breath_. And so he did. Breathe in, breathe out, slowly.

When the Conn-Pod hit the neck of the Jaeger with a resonant boom, Mark’s breath got cut short for a few moments. But the welcoming warm blue light of Golden Sunset calmed Mark’s nerve down as the Jaeger came to life. Subconsciously, Mark’s hand reached forward to his own control panel as he started to set up his own disc. He didn’t have to turn to his right to know that Donghyuck was doing the same.

_“Good morning, Golden Sunset,”_ Marshal Moon’s said into his mic-piece, the greeting travelling to the Conn-Pod’s sound system. _“Prepare for neural handshake.”_

_“Starting in fifteen,”_ Dongyoung voice joined in.

“Nervous?” Donghyuck asked, Dongyoung’s countdown becoming background static to their ears.

“You think?” Mark managed to get the words out despite his throat being dry.

“You’re good.”

_“…three…”_

“No more sex this time,” Donghyuck said abruptly, almost causing Dongyoung to groan mid-countdown.

Mark’s laughter covered the sound of Dongyoung’s voice reciting the last number. Then, it felt like their heads were thrown back and all they saw was watery images in blue.

The first thing Donghyuck saw was a smile – his own smile, but he couldn’t see who he was facing, Donghyuck seated on a chair, leg bandaged, pulling Mark down to kiss him on the lips, _Jeno, don’t fuck this up – you don’t fuck it up, Donghyuck_, a room, an empty space, Mark sitting in the middle of his bed, back leaning against the war as he watched Golden Sunset destroy a Kaiju on his television, the light from screen the only thing shining in the room, casting an eerie glow on Mark’s face, _Mark will be fine_, the control panel lit up in the Conn-Pod – Donghyuck’s smile even brighter when he spotted Mark staring at him, Jaemin was lying on a hospital bed, Jeno sitting by his side recounting stories of the Sunset saving the Shatterdome once again, young Mark, staring wide-eyed at a building disintegrating into nothing, _Mark, Mark, Mark, Mark, Mark_.

_“Neural handshake, strong and holding.”_

“You think about my name an awful lot,” Mark joked.

“Wrong,” Donghyuck retorted at once. If they didn’t need to continue with the procedure, Donghyuck would have had his middle finger up and pointing at Mark. “Right Hemisphere calibrating.”

“Left Hemisphere calibrating.”

_“It’s a Category Three, codenamed Oysterminate,”_ the Marshal informed. _“Destroy it and then get out of there ASAP. Are we clear?”_

Mark didn’t laugh aloud but he was certainly chuckling in his mind, thinking how stupid the codename was. He didn’t have to look over at Donghyuck to know that the other was thinking the same. The sides of his mouth pulled up into a faint smile and at that moment, he knew Donghyuck’s lips were stretched into a grin over the stupid name as well.

“Yes, sir,” Donghyuck replied. “And you’re wrong, Mark.” He wasn’t talking about Osyterminate, no. “I don’t think about your name an awful lot. I think about you an awful lot.”

“…clear radius for battle.”

_Shit_, Mark thought. He was repeating Donghyuck’s words over and over again in his mind and missed out some information Dongyoung had given them about Oysterminate.

_Ten kilometres off the coast,_ came Donghyuck’s voice, mocking but not cruel, in Mark’s mind. _No civilian vessels nearby so we have a clear radius for battle._

It was nice to be connected like that.

_Don’t become complacent,_ Donghyuck said, chuckling, knowing exactly what Mark was thinking.

And Mark simply grinned.

Words didn’t have to be said aloud in the Drift.

“It’s huge,” Mark marvelled as Golden Sunset approached the Kaiju.

“Fascinated, are we?” Donghyuck scowled. “I’ll have you know that Sunset is way bigger and way more beautiful.”

“I’m not sure about Sunset being bigger, Donghyuck,” Mark admitted truthfully as he inspected the beast which stood opposite them at an incredible height. “But the latter, definitely. So let’s destroy this ugly thing.”

A cough echoed, stopping Donghyuck and Mark’s mini-talk. “This isn’t about whether the Jaeger or the Kaiju looks nicer, Rangers. It’s always about aesthetics when it comes to you Donghyuck, isn’t it?” Dongyoung sounded a little condescending but Donghyuck knew Dongyoung better than to think that the other was reprimanding him, especially over something so inconsequential.

“Not really,” Donghyuck answered with a grin as he raised his right leg – Mark is doing the same on his left side – before he started a momentum, charging towards Oysterminate. “It’s always about destroying these monsters.” Halfway through his sentence, Golden Sunset managed to close the distance between herself and the Kaiju. Naturally, Donghyuck and Mark were too, ready for their attack.

With their right hand raised and clenched into a fist, they threw it forward and Sunset’s metal fist landed straight at the Kaiju’s head. The beast let out a feral growl and the impact of Sunset’s fist to the beast’s skull sent a strong vibration throughout the Jaeger.

“You okay?” Donghyuck asked, more out of concern than obligation. “Mark?”

“I’m fine,” Mark replied hastily as he raised his right hand again. “Ready?”

The next blow they landed against Oysterminate’s skull was stronger than the first and this one caused the head of the beast to crack a little.

“Again!”

They pounded Sunset’s fist relentlessly against Oysterminate’s head and shockwaves of the force was seen throughout the Kaiju’s flesh. All of a sudden, Sunset was thrown backwards and both pilots hissed in unison at the force of being thrown aside.

“This thing has a tail,” Donghyuck growled, pushing himself back up to standing position.

_“You’re getting careless, Donghyuck.”_ There was the chiding tone in Dongyoung’s voice, and as much as Donghyuck didn’t like it, he had to accept it because it was his fault for overlooking. _“Mark, you knew didn’t you?”_

“I didn’t think it would get in the way,” Mark admitted shamefully.

_“This is about tea – ”_

“Shut up, Dongyoung. Mark knows,” Donghyuck gritted out. “Mark, let’s – ”

“I know.”

Without any more words, they charged forward, towards Oysterminate once again and just as the beast swung its tail towards them, they caught it with Sunset’s hand. Simultaneously, they increased pressure in their clenched fist. When a loud crack was heard, followed by a piercing scream, they knew that they had broken the Kaiju’s tail.

“Canon,” they called out in sync.

_Loading Plasmacaster_

They fired without a second thought, aimed the sonic blast right in between Oysterminate’s eyes. The first blast didn’t kill it so they slammed Sunset’s fist against the beast’s head once more and finally, Oysterminate’s cries of defeat resounded across the ocean, sending sonic waves in a large radius surrounding the area.

Silence once again filled the Conn-Pod except for the soft buzzing of Sunset’s energy and heavy breaths from her two pilots. Mark turned to his side and found that Donghyuck was already staring at him. Staring at him with a tired expression but a spark in his eyes and a smile on his lips.

Golden Sunset did it. Mark and Donghyuck did it.

_“Well done, Sunset.”_

*****

“Well done, Mark.” The words that Donghyuck had been wanting to say since Osyterminate had been destroyed finally left his mouth.

After they had gone back to the Shatterdome, they had been crowded by other Rangers and LOCCENT technicians, congratulating them, cheering for them. _“Golden Sunset’s official debut,”_ Jeno had said, grinning from ear to ear as he pulled Donghyuck into a hug, then proceeded to squeeze the life out of Mark. Jaemin had been there too, complaining about how unfair it was that he was still out-of-commission, putting Violet Destiny out-of-commission. Donghyuck had assured him that they would have their moment of glory too.

As he had been about to pull Mark away to their quarters, Dongyoung had appeared suddenly to drag them both to the cafeteria for a small celebratory party for them. Mostly Mark.

Mark had been overwhelmed by everything – Donghyuck could see it in his eyes. What had been weird for Donghyuck was that he had been equally overwhelmed, and had ended up on Mark’s back, legs too wobbly to carry himself, crying into Mark’s shoulder on the way back to their shared room which they had requested for.

“Not crying anymore?” Mark teased.

“I was emotional, you ass. I am emotional, you ass.”

Laughing, Mark stretched out his legs, looking down at his toes before turning to look at Donghyuck who was lying down on the bed.

“You’re supposed to say, ‘thank you’, Mark.”

Standing up, Mark walked over to Donghyuck’s bed and bent over the top to look down at the other’s face.

“This is making me dizzy,” Donghyuck complained half-heartedly, closing his eyes at the same moment he felt Mark’s lips touching his own.

It was brief, nothing but a light peck on the lips, but enough to make Donghyuck feel breathless.

Taking a moment to himself, Donghyuck opened his eyes again but Mark’s face wasn’t hovering above his anymore. “What was that?”

“My ‘thank you’,” Mark explained easily.

“Come here,” Donghyuck said, though he made no effort to make any space for Mark on his bed.

So Mark ended up hovering over him again. Only this time, Mark was on the bed too, his knees caging Donghyuck’s thighs as he laid kisses all over Donghyuck’s face, down the column of his neck.

“Not…why…I asked…you…over…” Donghyuck knew he sounded breathless but he couldn’t think straight with the way Mark was sucking on his skin.

“You didn’t tell me to stop.” Mark pulled away, admiring his handiwork.

“I made the suggestion because I thought Jaemin would be up in a matter of weeks.”

Frowning, Mark sat up straight, resting his weight on Donghyuck’s legs. “What?”

Donghyuck pushed Mark off and shifted to one side, allowing Mark to occupy the spot next to him. There wasn’t a lot of space, their arms were pressed against one another but it was alright. Donghyuck rather they be physically close like that.

“I thought that Jaemin would wake up after three weeks, maybe a little more. At most a month. That was what I truly believed. That was why I offered to be Jeno’s partner. I was Drift Compatible with him anyway. So why not just train with him and help him get past what I assumed was the toughest moment in his life before continuing with mine, right? I pressed the pause button in our partnership, in our relationship. I paused us, Mark. And I thought that I could just push ‘play’ again and everything would pick up from where it had left off.” Donghyuck wanted to look at Mark so badly, wanted to see the expression on the other’s face, wanted to intertwine their fingers and prayed that Mark wouldn’t let go.

He only held on to Mark’s hand.

“Say something,” Donghyuck pressed for a reply, anything. “You’re not angry, are you?”

“I’m not,” Mark assured quickly. “I’m thinking about what to say.” A small chuckle slipped from Mark’s lips. “You know, I thought the same too.”

“What?”

“I thought that Jaemin would be back on his feet in a matter of weeks,” Mark admitted.

Silence fell upon them like a blanket before they both burst into laughter, breaking the tranquillity.

“We’re both idiots,” Donghyuck said in between heaps of laughter. “There was blood. He was bleeding from his head or in his head and we both thought he would be up and walking in twenty-one days.”

“We sound more stupid if you count in days,” Mark pointed out, trying to control his own laughter.

“But, seriously. Are we daft?” Donghyuck sighed, fond but exasperated. “Glad to know that the Drift isn’t wrong about our compatibility.”

“The Drift is _never_ wrong,” Mark joked. “Does this mean we connect over our shared stupidity rather than anything else?”

“That’s just one component out of the many we have in common. Now we know who’s the dumber one between us though.” Grabbing Mark’s hand, Donghyuck laid it over his heart. “Mark Lee, my lifelong partner,” he announced dramatically before Mark caught up with his words. Then Donghyuck’s tone became softer, gentler, with the next question he asked. “Is that why you left after three weeks?”

The laughter died down, an air of sombreness hanging heavy in the room.

“Yeah,” Mark admitted, his voice a quiet whisper. “Because Jaemin hadn’t woken then and I finally realised that he wasn’t going to wake up any time soon. There were complications or something with his surgery according to Dongyoung. He would be down for a while, quite a while. And like I told you, I couldn’t stand being here anymore. You had been training with Jeno for almost a month and it seemed like you guys were all ready to pilot a Jaeger together. Where did that leave me? I was lost, you know? I was alone. I was always alone. I trained alone. I ate alone. There wasn’t a place for me anymore. Not as a Ranger, not as your partner, your co-pilot. That was when I realised that we have always been together and it just sucked, I guess, that I couldn’t be by your side anymore.”

Bringing Mark’s hand up from his chest, Donghyuck kissed his knuckles. “You’re always in my heart, Mark. You know that,” he said, lips dragging around Mark’s fingers as he spoke. Sighing, he brought Mark’s hand down to their sides again, intertwining their fingers this time. “I wanted to stop. Stop being Jeno’s partner. Push that ‘play’ button earlier but I couldn’t. I couldn’t just abandon Jeno like that once I realised that Jaemin wasn’t going to wake up any time soon. I just didn’t…I didn’t…I didn’t think that it would take…”

“Two years,” Mark completed the sentence for him and Donghyuck could only nod silently. “Two long years. Have we been apart for so long?” he asked, a tinge of nostalgia in his voice that made Donghyuck’s heart ache.

“It has been so long,” Donghyuck said, but he was reminding himself of the years they had spent away from one another more than answering Mark. “That’s why just pressing ‘play’ again didn’t start from where we had left off. It’s been far too long. I don’t think our minds remember. I think we grew from there and we changed. So much has changed. There’s simply no way to pick up from where I had paused everything about us. And I’m sorry for that. I’m really sorry and I don’t know how long I’ll be sorry for but this is good too. Now, right here, us. We’re good now too.”

“Never could have been better,” Mark agreed. “Say, Donghyuck. We kiss a lot and stuff.”

“Where is this going?” Donghyuck asked, slightly suspicious of Mark’s intentions.

“We have sex too.”

“Good sex,” Donghyuck added.

“Right. Good sex. And we clearly like each other a lot,” Mark continued and Donghyuck already knew where he was heading. They didn’t need to be in the Drift for Donghyuck to read Mark’s mind and Donghyuck started preparing his answer.

“Do you want to date?”

Donghyuck considered saying ‘yes’ straight away. It wasn’t every day that Mark asked him out after all. “I’ll date you after this war is over.” 

*****

Months had passed since their first battle and ever since then, Donghyuck and Mark, together as Golden Sunset, took down every Kaiju they were sent to face remarkably. Most Kaijus they had faced were only Category Twos, occasionally some Category Threes, but as a Mark-4 Jaeger, defeating those Kaijus was somewhat of an easy task. Still, the doze of adrenaline and excitement running through their bodies every time the alarm rang was a feeling that would never get old.

“Don’t you think we’re getting a little too complacent?” Donghyuck asked in between kisses one morning when the sky was still dark and the sun was nowhere in sight.

“Hm?” Was all Mark said in reply, too caught up in the kiss.

Rolling his eyes, Donghyuck pushed Mark off him and started fixing his hair. The protest on Mark’s lips died once Donghyuck pressed another kiss to his lips. “I said – ”

“We’re not getting complacent,” Mark cut Donghyuck off. “I don’t think we are?” he sounded a little uncertain. “Is it wrong to be confident?”

“Being complacent and confident is two different things,” Donghyuck argued with a scowl. “Maybe you’re the one becoming complacent. For someone who’s piloting a Jaeger for the first time – ”

“It’s hardly my first time. We’ve been doing this together for a few months now,” Mark said as Donghyuck continued talking – “You’re really not nervous or scared, you know” – their voices overlapping with one another but the words ringing clearly in the other’s ears.

“What is there to be nervous about or scared of?” Mark questioned.

“I see it in the Drift,” Donghyuck pointed out.

“And guess what, Donghyuck.” Mark’s voice suddenly went loud, it was firm, surprising Donghyuck slightly at his sudden outburst but he quickly composed himself. “I see things in the Drift too. I know you’re still afraid. I know you’re scared. But you shouldn’t let the past stop you from doing and achieving greater things. I know you blacked out once in Golden Sunset but I’m not going to let you die on me while we’re in there together.”

Without realising, Donghyuck had been sucking on his lower lip, teeth nibbling slightly. Panic was written all over his face. “I’ve been doing this for too long.”

Mark took one of Donghyuck’s hands into his own and kissed its knuckles, a familiar action, except it was usually Donghyuck doing it to Mark. “I won’t let you die on me out there. I promise. So just do the same for me.”

For a while, Donghyuck didn’t respond. When he finally did, it was a simple nod of his head. And then Mark pressed their foreheads together. “I’m not scared because it’s you I’m with. Because it’s Golden Sunset. When I’m piloting her with you, I feel more at home than I will ever feel anywhere. You make it feel like home. And you make it okay. You ease my nerves. I’m still scared, yes. You can see all that in the Drift. And I can see that you’re scared too. But I know that you feel comforted by my presence too.” He chuckled. “And I know that you won’t let me die on you. I see it. I see it in the Drift.”

There were tears threatening to spill from Donghyuck’s eyes but the floodgates never opened.

*****

The cafeteria was empty except for a few LOCCENT staff and Rangers. Many tables were unoccupied but Donghyuck didn’t take any of them as he scanned the cafeteria looking for a particular someone.

“Look for someone?” A familiar voice greeted from behind Donghyuck causing the latter to spin around in delight and engulf the other in a bone-crushing hug before even looking at that person properly.

“Renjun!”

“I might have been the Marshal or Dongyoung for all you know,” Renjun choked because of Donghyuck’s bone-crushing hug. “Let go of me,” he demanded.

“Just a little while longer,” Donghyuck muttered but loosened his arms around Renjun, earning himself a relieved sigh from the technician.

‘A little while longer’ to Donghyuck meant ‘until Mark pried me away’. And true enough, only when Mark pulled Donghyuck’s arms off of Renjun did Donghyuck finally let go.

“They have inedible food again,” Renjun grumbled as he stabbed his fork into the lump called ‘mashed potatoes’. “And don’t try telling me otherwise, Donghyuck,” he added on quickly because he knew that the younger boy was about to make some snarky comment about him being too picky with his food. “They have decent food sometimes, remember? When the cafeteria finally decides to bring back those food again, I’ll be sure to tell you.”

Renjun didn’t get a response from either Donghyuck or Mark, making him furrow his brows in discontent. The first thing that greeted his eyes as soon as he looked up from his meal was matching expressions from both Donghyuck and Mark. They both were wearing stupid grins on their faces in Renjun’s opinion. He waved his hand, as if he was dismissing the two and rolled his eyes when they both laughed at his gesture at the same time.

“What are you guys? Siamese twins?”

Another eye roll when Donghyuck and Mark replied _no, of course not_ simultaneously. “Seriously, Donghyuck,” Renjun started. “Ever since you got married – ” Donghyuck choked, but Renjun paid no heed to him and continued talking like Donghyuck’s well-being didn’t matter. “You’ve been neglecting your friends and spending all your time with your husband.” It was Mark’s turn to choke on his vegetables this time. Again, Renjun barely spared Mark a glance as he continued with his soliloquy, not caring about the fact that two of the L.A. Shatterdome’s finest pilots were gulping down mouthfuls of water in front of him. “You guys need to start paying attention to other things and not only to or about each other. I bet you don’t even remember your best friend’s names anymore, Donghyuck.”

“Yes, I do,” Donghyuck said instantly, glaring at Renjun. “It’s Jeno. And I didn’t get married.”

“You’re right, it’s Jeno,” Renjun affirmed and Donghyuck stared at him, indignant. “What about your childhood friend?”

“Jaemin.”

“Do you remember me?”

“Huang Renjun, I swear – ”

“Drifting is more intimate than marriage, isn’t it?” Renjun looked between Sunset’s pilots thoughtfully. “You Rangers and your warped sense of love.”

“It’s not warped,” Mark defended as if he was guilty of thinking so.

“I don’t think kissing’s in your job scope,” Renjun sounded genuinely concerned and it only served to make Mark blush to the tip of his ears.

“And I don’t think bitching’s in yours,” Donghyuck countered, his cheeks colouring as well.

Renjun sighed in exasperation. “I’m not bitching, Donghyuck. I just miss you.”

_Warped sense of love_.

They weren’t in the Drift now but Donghyuck knew that Mark was focusing on the exact same words as he was.

Before any of them said anything else, the siren blared and Renjun immediately got up from his seat, meal left forgotten on the table. Donghyuck and Mark turned to each other, sharing the same look.

“Loading station, now,” Renjun said, voice tight. The fear never ended no matter how many times they all did this.

It didn’t take another second before Donghyuck and Mark got up on their feet to follow Renjun out the cafeteria door. Renjun was going to LOCCENT and they, they were going to meet Golden Sunset again.

“Donghyuck,” Renjun called out before they went their separate ways. “I’ll be watching you, I’ll be watching Golden Sunset from LOCCENT. You know I’ll watch out for you right?”

“I know,” Donghyuck assured Renjun though no assurance was really needed.

“What Category is the Kaiju?” Mark asked and Renjun’s face paled. “We can take it. We know that Violet Destiny and Cosmic Crusher were sent to Hong Kong to help early this morning so we’re the only ones left but we still can take it. No matter what. And Violet Destiny should be back to help us in time if we need her.”

“Four.”

*****

The walk to the loading station was silent. But Mark’s heart was beating so loudly, he was afraid that his eardrums might burst. Walks to the Conn-Pod of Golden Sunset were usually quiet as well, occasionally some talking and words of reassurance. Today was slightly different however. No words were exchanged at all. Today, Donghyuck walked in step with Mark and held on to his hand tightly. Before they crossed the threshold to Golden Sunset’s Conn-Pod, Donghyuck gave Mark’s hand a gentle squeeze.

“See you later in the Drift,” Mark whispered and watched the drivesuit being fitted onto Donghyuck before he closed his eyes and was suited up in his own drivesuit.

Everything was moving too quickly. When Mark opened his eyes again, all he saw surrounding him – Sunset – was the vast expanse of dull murky grey.

“Mark,” Donghyuck called out, voice firm and steady; much like their neural handshake. But Mark knew better. Mark heard the slight waver and fear underneath the brave façade Donghyuck was putting on.

“I’m here.”

_We can do this_.

The heavy metal of Golden Sunset clanked as she ran across the ocean towards the ferocious monster.

Marshal Moon cleared his throat over the mic-piece. _“Category Four, codenamed Giga.”_ A pause, then a forlorn sigh. _“All the best, Sunset.”_

“You can count on us,” both Donghyuck and Mark said in unison.

Before Sunset got closer to the monster, Donghyuck lifted his left hand, curling it into a tight fist. To his side, Mark moved in perfect sync. The Conn-Pod was buzzing with energy and the lights on their drivesuits glowed. They were growing nearer and nearer towards Giga. And once the Kaiju was within range, they threw a punch, seemingly aimed at the Kaiju’s head, and Giga – Giga was cleverer than the others they had faced before, as expected of a Category Four Kaiju – immediately lowered its head, flashing its horns towards Golden Sunset. But they weren’t aiming for Giga’s head.

With one quick pull to the back, they swung their fist forward, landing a blow directly at Giga’s gut, causing the monster to wail in anger and agony.

“Another one!”

As quick as the first, another punch was landed and another and another until Giga gripped their fist and started to crush it, tearing screams from Donghyuck’s and Mark’s lips. Giga howled, its shrill, high-pitched voice sending sonic waves, rippling across the ocean and the echoes of it blasting in Donghyuck’s and Mark’s ears.

The sound of metal crushing didn’t go unnoticed as Donghyuck and Mark both cried out loud in pain when they felt the bones of their left hand getting crushed.

_“Sunset, fall back. I repeat, Sunset, fall back.”_ It was the Marshal’s voice. Anyone knew better than to defy the Marshal’s commands but Donghyuck and Mark were a special pair.

“Not giving up,” Donghyuck gritted out as he crouched down, right hand rested against the floor to support himself.

Giga was smarter than the average Kaiju they usually faced but not smart enough to anticipate their next move. It was still crushing Sunset’s already-broken left fist. The pain was still throbbing in their left hand but as time passed, it become numb and it felt almost as if the nerves were cut off (they probably were).

Words weren’t needed between them. Donghyuck swung his leg, creating an arch and managed to topple Giga over and into the ocean bed. Once Giga was down, Mark raised his right arm, palm facing towards Giga as metal plates opened and shots were fired at Giga’s eye. They knew it was a direct hit when the monster shrieked. With only one hand left, it was difficult to operate. But still, Donghyuck could get around it. He keyed in the command for the cannon quickly and a smile crept onto his lips when he heard the breastplates of Golden Sunset opening, her canons lining up, and ready to fire at the beast before them.

“Fire it, Donghyuck.”

No need for repetition as Donghyuck let out a shot towards the Kaiju’s chest. One won’t kill it, they knew from experience. But this was a Category Four, so two wouldn’t be able to kill it either. They let out the second shot, aiming this one at the Kaiju’s other eye and hitting it successfully. Now the Kaiju was blinded. It flailed around clumsily, its tail whacking the surface of the water, sending ripples across the ocean and water splashing everywhere.

“Now,” Mark shouted, and another shot was fired, this time aimed for its chest again.

If one thought fighting a Kaiju in control was difficult, fighting a Kaiju out of control was a hundred times worse. Giga was hammering the water’s surface with its fist and whipping its tail around randomly because it had lost its sight. It was shrieking and pummelling anything in its path.

“It’s blinded so it’s just thrashing around. It won’t stay in one spot,” Donghyuck hissed as he tried to follow the Kaiju’s movement but to no avail, only barely able to duck when Giga swung its tail wildly, almost smacking right into the side of Sunset’s head.

“Then we’ll do this blindly too,” Mark said firmly as he managed to land a punch on the Kaiju’s head, further angering it.

_“Sunset, report.”_ It was Dongyoung this time and for once, he couldn’t cover the worry in his voice.

“Left hand down, we’re fine otherwise,” Donghyuck replied quickly.

The next blow Giga landed was unexpected because it was blinded, it wasn’t supposed to be able to make the next move so accurately. Giga’s spikes pierced through Sunset’s left leg and Donghyuck and Mark both fell to their right knee at the same time as they howled in pain.

“Left side immobilised,” Donghyuck reported through gritted teeth as he tried to ignore the searing pain in the left side of his body.

_“We’ll try to send back-up,”_ Dongyoung promised, although he and the pilots both knew that it was near impossible because the other pilots elsewhere had their own fight. _“Destiny should be back any minute now. Please hang on, Sunset.”_

“You can count on us,” Mark replied, voice hoarse and cracked from too much shouting. “Donghyuck, think you can fire another shot?”

“Obviously.”

Again, the breastplates of Golden Sunset slid open, her canons moving into position and with the command given, rounds of firing could be heard. Each fired shot which touched Giga’s rough skin sent a resonating boom to miles away. Smoke was covering the whole area when Sunset finally stopped firing her canon. All around were black fumes of smoke and small puddles of fire in the water. If they wanted to confirm the death of Giga, it could only be done once the cloudy mist had cleared.

Donghyuck was the first who broke the eerie silence. “Is it dead?”

“I don’t know.” Mark gulped as he squinted his eyes, trying to make out what was left of Giga (if any). “I really don’t know.”

_“Sunset, what’s going on?”_ Marshal Moon asked, more anxious than impatient.

“We don’t know. We don’t know if Giga’s dead,” Mark answered, his heart throbbing rapidly against his ribcage as he tried to calm his breathing.

_“It’s not dead,”_ Dongyoung said, and for the first time, there was fear and panic evident in Dongyoung’s voice. _“The red dot hasn’t flickered out so we can be sure that it isn’t dead.”_

“But we can’t – ”

Donghyuck’s sentence died in his throat when he heard the howl of a Kaiju; the howl of Giga. Sunset’s as blinded as Giga was now and there was no way to see where Giga was.

“Can we just – ”

Like Donghyuck, Mark’s words just died out, but not because Giga was howling again. It was because he felt a sharp pain in his ribs. The next minute, he was choking, spitting out blood and left kneeling on the floor. The violent coughing he could hear from his right told him that Donghyuck was currently experiencing the same thing.

“It impaled our gut,” Donghyuck choked out. He stared at his palm where blobs of red were splat all over it now.

Just as Donghyuck had said, Giga impaled its spikes in the gut of Sunset. And the worse thing was they didn’t even know how Giga managed to do it, with its vision impaired and after taking rounds and rounds of blasts from Sunset’s canon. Even before they could move one bit, the Kaiju dug its spikes deeper into Sunset’s gut, leaving her two pilots expressing their pain and agony in a soundless scream.

“Donghyuck,” Mark whispered. He barely had his voice left. “Canon…”

Mustering all his strength, Donghyuck used the remaining of it to key in the commands to prepare one of Sunset’s rockets for launch. It was their last chance. They had to fire at the right time.

“Just as we’re falling forward okay?” Mark told Donghyuck, though it wasn’t really necessary. It was all in the Drift. Donghyuck knew what Mark wanted to say. But Mark said it anyway, not so much for Donghyuck to hear or to make sure that his message got across, it was more to tell himself that he was still alive and that the fight was still going on so he couldn’t black out now.

Golden Sunset was slowly tilting forward, now allowing Donghyuck and Mark to see what the Kaiju had become; it was in as much a terrible state as Sunset was in. Blue, sticky substance – its blood – was matted all over its face and its tail laid motionless on the water surface. Both eyes of Giga were a bloody mess and the only part which still seemed intact was the right arm of the Kaiju where it was impaled in Sunset’s gut.

As soon as the gun reached the Kaiju’s coarse and uneven skin with a sonic boom, Donghyuck keyed in the commands to fire their rocket. And the rocket went straight in between Giga’s eyes. The Kaiju thrashed in the ocean, but its actions were slower now, more haphazard too. Another blast sounded and Giga’s death was marked by a punctuating scream which echoed miles and miles away.

“Mark…” Donghyuck breathed out. “Hang in there…they’re coming for us.” It was barely a whisper but Mark nodded, understanding each and every one of the words clearly because he could hear them all in the Drift. Eyes unfocused, he could still make out Violet Destiny coming towards them.

Mark’s eyelids felt heavy and droopy, and he wasn’t sure how long more he could keep them open. “Donghyuck,” he started, slowly and weakly. “You know where you’ll always find me right?”

Donghyuck was almost as disorientated as Mark was but also not nearly half as injured. “What are you even saying…?”

“I can’t…much longer…” Mark had taken the brunt end of the damage since he was standing on the left side after all. “Donghyuck…”

Sunset was still falling forward, only the dead body of the Kaiju was preventing it from hitting the ocean’s surface.

“You know…where…find…” The battle has ended and the fight has drained away from Mark’s body, but he was talking aloud this time because he wanted Donghyuck to hear him. Wanted Donghyuck to understand his words.

“Mark? Mark…? I’m losing you.”

_“Sun – set – re – port.”_ Marshal Moon’s voice was static, disjointed.

“Hurry, get us out of here, please,” Donghyuck sobbed.

Suddenly Sunset wasn’t tilting forward anymore, and Donghyuck didn’t have to look to know that Violet Destiny was holding her up.

Mark coughed, drawing Donghyuck’s attention back at him. “You’ll…fin – me – you – ”

_Mark_, Donghyuck wanted to shout very badly. He didn’t catch Mark’s last words before the other’s eyes shut completely and he went limp in his drivesuit. The lights swirling around the suit dimmed and the engine of Sunset was coming to a soft hum.

“Where? Mark,” Donghyuck choked out brokenly. “What did…you say…?”

The sound of the choppers in the air was the last thing Donghyuck heard before he blacked out as well.

No, not in the Drift.

_You’ll always find me in your heart, Donghyuck_.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [twt](https://twitter.com/fullsunlet)
> 
>   
Comments and kudos are appreciated!
> 
> (comments make me happy and inspired to write more and I want to be motivated to write more D:)


	4. Conquering Love

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING: fight scenes (nothing too graphic again)
> 
> \- i made up some information about the Shatterdomes here  
\- i also made up the stuff about transporting the Jaegers and all that towards the last few scenes

Lee Donghyuck remembered. He remembered very clearly that one day ten years ago when he had passed all the tests to qualify as a pilot. The tests which he had taken over a period of a few months. The tests which he had taken behind his parents’ back. Behind his siblings’ back. Before his parents could even say ‘no’, he had been ushered off to the Shatterdome in Los Angeles.

Bright-eyed, young, and eager, perhaps even foolish, with a strong desire to save the world, Donghyuck had signed up to be a pilot without a second thought. If it could save everyone’s lives, why not?

He remembered the adrenaline he had felt when he had first stepped foot into the Shatterdome. When he had first laid eyes on a Jaeger. When he had first saw Flaming Nova, piloted by his two favourite pilots Byun Baekhyun and Park Chanyeol (partly the reason why he had decided to sign up too), tearing down a Kaiju. When he had found out that a certain Lee Mark had been sent to the L.A. Shatterdome as well.

The other boy was but a year older than him and they had lived in the same area back in Seoul. Despite that, not once in Donghyuck’s life had he spoken to the older boy. And vice-versa. They had seen each other in school and on the streets. Maybe a wave now and then, but that had been all.

If Donghyuck had to admit to himself, he had been physically attracted to the Mark. Being homosexual hadn’t exactly been widely accepted so Donghyuck had kept quiet about it. Furthermore, he hadn’t even been sure about his sexual orientation being gay at that time, because he had been rather certain that he still felt attraction towards girls. Little did he know that Mark had been thinking the same. Except the older had been much more vocal and daring. Such courage.

“Hi, I’m Lee Mark. What’s your name?”

*****

Whiteness.

That was all Donghyuck saw the moment he opened his eyes. For a moment, he thought he was blind because a blinding light was all he could see. With a few blinks, Donghyuck’s eyesight returned to normal and this time, all he could see was wires attached to the machines by his bedside. The smell of herbs permeated the air and it made Donghyuck want to vomit. It wasn’t so much the smell that made Donghyuck’s gut clench, it was more the atmosphere of the whole place being overly sterile and the various tubes stuck in his body which made his stomach lurch in discontent.

The longer he stared at the tubes and wires, the wrenching feeling grew stronger and stronger.

“Donghyuck!” Donghyuck looked up and saw Jaemin hurriedly walking over to him. “You’re awake!” He carefully placed a hand on Donghyuck’s shoulder, attentive about the latter’s injuries, not wanting to cause him any pain of discomfort.

Staring at Jaemin, Donghyuck took a moment to find his voice again. “How long have I been out?” Donghyuck asked as he covered Jaemin’s hand with his own, smiling when he felt his childhood friend squeeze his shoulder in comfort.

“Almost a week,” Jeno answered instead as he walked towards Donghyuck and stood behind Jaemin. He bent down slightly to hold Donghyuck’s arm. “We were worried sick. What happened out there?”

A rush of memories flooded Donghyuck at once. The shrieking, the pain, the blood, the screams, _Mark_. And all he wanted to do at that very moment was to pull the tubes out of his body. When he grabbed onto one of the tubes, Jeno swiftly pulled Donghyuck’s hand away. He shook his head at him, mouthing _don’t_.

Donghyuck stared at the tube then at Jeno’s hand. He thought about his left hand – how the bones were all crushed and he could hardly even move it, his broken ribs with all the punching he had gotten, and the damaged head that came with all the other injuries when he had blacked out. He thought about the intense pain he felt when Sunset’s left leg was impaled. He thought about the spikes twisting in Sunset’s gut. He thought about –

“What happened to Sunset?” Donghyuck sounded calm. He even looked calm. But Jeno and Jaemin knew better. They also knew that there was another question left hanging in the air that Donghyuck didn’t want to ask.

Jaemin pulled back and gave him a sympathetic gaze before he turned to look at Jeno who was staring at Donghyuck with the exact same expression Jaemin wore.

“It’s okay,” Donghyuck assured his friends with a smile, but it didn’t really reach his eyes. “They’re not disposing it though, are they?”

“No,” Jeno started slowly. He moved aside to grab two chairs so that he and Jaemin could sit next to Donghyuck’s bed. “But,” he paused, lips pursed. “It would be difficult to repair her.”

“Why?” Donghyuck’s brows furrowed in confusion. “If they aren’t going to dispose her, then the damage shouldn’t be too bad, right?” Donghyuck was lying to himself at that point. The damage was _that bad_ and deep down in his heart, he knew it.

“You didn’t see what happened after you blacked out,” Jaemin began. “When we were hulling you guys out of the water, Sunset’s Conn-Pod nearly flew out, so we had to be extremely careful. We were really careful, Donghyuck, I swear. The right half, the side you were in, managed to stay mostly upright because of the Kaiju’s deadweight for support but the other side…” he trailed off, turning to Jeno for help to continue.

But Jeno looked as concerned about what to say next.

“It’s okay,” Donghyuck said, saving his two friends from their uneasiness. “I understand.” No, he didn’t understand and the words left a bitter taste in his mouth.

“It’s okay to cry, Donghyuck,” Jeno muttered, trying to coax his best friend out of his stubbornness and just let his sadness show. “Tears don’t represent weakness.”

Jeno was right but Donghyuck felt like he had no more tears left to cry. Everything felt so numb and cold, he didn’t really know how he was feeling.

“How’s Mark?” Donghyuck finally decided to ask, his voice cracking a little as he choked back a hiccup. “Is he…is he…?” No, Donghyuck didn’t have the courage to say it.

“He’s alive,” Jeno replied quickly, calming Donghyuck’s nerves down. “But he’s still out. Like Jaemin said, the Conn-Pod was almost ripped out then it kind of was torn into half.” He hesitated before continuing. “Only the right side remained out of the water, but the left side fell into the ocean so it took some more time before help got to him.”

Donghyuck’s eyes widened at the new piece of information. “Why didn’t you guys get him first?”

Sighing, Jeno leaned forward and reached for Donghyuck’s hand again. “We were trying to get you both out at the same time. We didn’t know that the Conn-Pod was going to split. We wanted to – ”

“He was unconscious. You guys should have gotten him first,” Donghyuck argued.

“You were both unconscious by the time we got to Sunset,” Jaemin countered.

Not saying anything, Donghyuck simply glared at the empty space in front of him, lips pressed into a thin, stubborn line.

“What are his chances of…” Donghyuck stopped abruptly, unable to say the next word.

“Slim.” Again, Jeno knew what Donghyuck wanted to ask. “But he’ll make it. Mark’s a fighter. As for yourself,” Jeno continued, smiling when Donghyuck finally looked like he was about to pay attention to his own health. “You have to rest for another week. Full recovery might take up to about two months but your left hand…” Then Jeno turned to Jaemin for help. “Your left hand is…”

Nothing about his left hand looked out of place except for the stitches all over it and nothing felt wrong. Suddenly, it occurred to Donghyuck that the problem was that he couldn’t feel anything at all.

“It’s not completely useless,” Jaemin said quickly, a little panicky in fact, when he saw Donghyuck’s expressionless face, worried that he might be too jaded to even feel sad. “Just weak. It’ll take some time before you regain strength in that hand. There’s therapy and all that stuff for that. I went through it too and look at me now.”

“It’s fine,” Donghyuck replied instantly. “I still have this,” he explained, raising his right hand slowly and cautiously. For a while, he inspected it and like his left hand, there were stitches on it, needles poked in his veins. But unlike his left hand, he could feel it, the nerves still intact. Carefully, he tested the joints of his fingers by clenching and unclenching. The movement was slow and rather difficult but Donghyuck managed. Satisfied, he rotated his shoulder once to ensure that it was still working properly. There was a dull ache throbbing at his shoulder blade but at least it was still intact. Just to be sure, he wiggled his fingers a few more times. “I still have this,” he repeated, more to convince himself than to reassure Jeno and Jaemin.

Jeno sighed and held onto Donghyuck’s right hand. “Please don’t do anything stupid.” It earned him a strange look from Donghyuck.

Sending Jeno a weird look, Donghyuck then chuckled. “Can’t beat becoming a Jaeger pilot.”

“I’m serious,” Jeno insisted. “Don’t walk around, not until two weeks later so that means you can’t visit Mark. Get enough sleep and don’t take too many painkillers.” 

Donghyuck nodded in appreciation, smile growing wider and then vanishing quickly when a thought passed his mind. He pulled his hand out of Jeno’s hold and started feeling for his left leg.

Jaemin noticed what Donghyuck was doing and let out a wince. “Donghyuck…”

Nothing. Donghyuck felt nothing in his left leg. He laughed bitterly before pressing his right hand against his left leg once again. Still nothing. “So I’m kind of paralyzed?”

“No, no, no, no, no,” both Jeno and Jaemin said in unison. “It’s just weak,” Jeno continued. “Like your left hand.”

There was a time for white lies and there was a time for the truth. “Did you guys manage to see the fight? Sunset’s fight. Or did Destiny only arrive after we were beaten to a pulp?”

“After you guys killed the Kaiju,” Jeno corrected.

“We didn’t see the fight but we heard about it after we brought you back to the Shatterdome,” Jaemin explained. “Renjun said it was a good fight. You guys held on until the end and that they, _we_, are all very proud of you.”

Memories of the fight rushed back into Donghyuck’s mind unwillingly and he could hear himself screaming, the piercing howl of Giga ringing in his ears and the sound of Sunset’s fist getting crushed. An involuntary shiver ran down his spine and his senses heightened as if he was on the battlefield again and had to be on a lookout. One of his friends, he didn’t know who because he was too spaced out to focus on anything, seemed to notice his sudden change in mood because he felt a hand on his right leg, as if it was there to comfort him. Maybe there was another hand on his left but he just couldn’t feel it.

With a sigh, Donghyuck pushed the hand off his right leg gently; it was Jeno’s and there wasn’t a hand on the left side. “I wonder how Mark’s injuries are. Probably a hundred times worse.” He couldn’t imagine drowning, water filling his lungs, blocking his passage for air and going deeper and deeper, sinking further and further until his ears were so full and blocked that he wanted to cry out but couldn’t.

“Oh, Donghyuck,” Jeno said sympathetically as he pulled him into a hug this time, being as careful as possible. “He’ll be fine. He’s stronger than that. Like I said, Mark’s a fighter. And you know that better than anyone else.”

Nodding, Donghyuck allowed Jeno to hold him, having no intentions of pushing him away again. Jaemin joined in, slowly wrapping his arms around Donghyuck.

The blare of the siren broke the serenity of the room. It was still a familiar sound to Donghyuck but the only difference now was that the sound didn’t send adrenaline rushing through his veins anymore; it sent floods of discomfort to his stomach and he felt like he was going to retch soon. The Kaiju attacks weren’t going to stop just because he was currently out-of-commission. Killing one Category Four Kaiju didn’t mean that the rest of the fights were going to be easy. The Breach was still open and the Kaijus were going to keep on coming.

“Go.” He hurriedly let go of his friends’ embrace. “Go,” he repeated when they pulled back but were still looking at him worriedly. “Just…” he waved his hand half-heartedly towards the door before bringing it over his mouth when he felt bile rising up his throat.

“We’ll see you later,” Jaemin called out as Jeno pushed him out of the room. “We love you.”

Donghyuck nodded in understanding. He knew even if they didn’t say it. He knew a lot of things people didn’t say and he often wondered why people still chose to say what he already knew. It brought him back to the end of the fight when Mark and himself were desperately clinging on to life, saying words they already knew what the other wanted to say aloud just to believe that they were still alive. People are strange creatures.

Sleep didn’t come easy because whenever Donghyuck shut his eyes, he saw Giga, he heard Giga’s shrill and chilling scream and he saw Sunset falling. He saw Sunset’s impaled gut and he instantly felt the pain rushing back to his ribs and the nausea sensation taking over his entire being. Only after begging for more painkillers and an injection to put him to sleep did he shut his eyes, but not without a little fear.

*****

When Donghyuck roused from his sleep, he turned his head to the side and was surprised to find someone resting his head on his bed. With bleary and droopy eyes, it was difficult to make out who his visitor was but the warm chestnut hair told him it was Renjun.

“I’m up,” Donghyuck whispered to Renjun and the other stirred a little but made no other attempts to move. He never really noticed but he was glad that he still had his voice; glad that it didn’t disappear from all the screaming. “Renjun,” Donghyuck tried and this time, he got a response.

Renjun’s head shot up immediately and a soft crack could be heard, causing Renjun to wince at the sound. Carefully, he brought a hand to the back of his neck to massage gently. “Don’t scare me like that,” he scolded Donghyuck half-heartedly and glared at the younger boy who chuckled in return.

Rolling his eyes, Donghyuck fixed Renjun with a pointed look. “Aren’t you the one scaring me? Because sleeping on the side of my bed totally wasn’t going to scare me.”

“You fight Kaijus and my head lying on your hospital bed is supposed to scare you?” Renjun retorted. “You weren’t surprised anyway.”

“No,” Donghyuck agreed slowly. “But you didn’t know that.”

“Yes, I did,” Renjun protested, narrowing his eyes at Donghyuck. “I thought you were supposed to be sick and dying. But all I see is how you’re mean and…you. Just you being you.”

This brought a smile to Donghyuck’s face. He knew Renjun meant _sick and dying_ kindly – as bizarre as it sounded. Donghyuck didn’t need a mirror to know how terrible he looked but Renjun made it sound like he had fallen off a swing at a playground and was just running an incredibly high fever. Maybe it was intentional, but Renjun made Donghyuck feel a whole lot better.

“Mark’s fine in case you were wondering.” The sudden switch in topic caught Donghyuck off guard. “He’s still in a coma like Jeno and Jaemin had already told you, but otherwise, he’s doing fine. His heart rate is normal and his ribs are healing or something.”

_Ribs are healing or something_, Donghyuck took note. For a while, he was still nodding even though Renjun wasn’t talking anymore. The information was slowly seeped into him but he frowned as soon as he registered everything properly. “I didn’t say anything about Mark.”

“You were wondering about him,” Renjun explained calmly, staring Donghyuck straight in the eye, making the latter splutter.

“I wasn’t wondering about him!”

“You were thinking so loudly the whole world could hear you.”

Damn Renjun for being so observant. “Stop reading my mind. It’s an invasion of privacy.”

“I’m not telepathic and I don’t need to be to know what’s or who’s on your mind. Stop thinking,” Renjun reprimanded lightly with a small scowl on his face. “Stop thinking. Stop thinking. Mark is like omnipresent in your life. You don’t need to say anything for me to know what you’re thinking about or who you’re thinking about. Mark and Mark.”

Annoying. Renjun was annoying.

Nothing Donghyuck said could have changed Renjun’s mind and he knew that very well so he opted to wave a dismissive hand at the LOCCENT technician instead and pulled the covers over his face so that he didn’t have to face Renjun. It wasn’t like he was just trying to shut out Renjun or anything. It was the doctor’s orders; he needed rest. But they both knew better. Still, it was enough to make Renjun’s protests die down and leave, but not without ruffling Donghyuck’s hair before and wishing him a _get well soon_.

As soon as Renjun left the room, Donghyuck brought the covers down and then he felt his eyelids getting heavier and heavier. But just as his eyes snapped shut, he heard Giga’s horrifying screech and felt the persistent and excruciating pain in his ribs coming back. Sleep eluded him yet again as he bit his lower lip while grabbing the sides of the blanket. Somewhere in the back of his mind, he wondered how Mark was coping with the darkness.

*****

It took several more days before Donghyuck could sleep properly without pills and weeks before he could finally walk again. The left side of his hand and leg were both healing well and he was now able carry some light things with his left hand.

Still, he felt useless. He felt like a burden to his friends who had been nothing short of thoughtful and caring, with consistent visits to him when he had still been bedridden. But it all simply made him feel even more hopeless. They had better things to do then to take care of him. The war with the monsters wasn’t over and terror continued to exist all around the globe. His friends should be training more and Renjun should be researching on how to improve their Jaegers or closing the Breach.

They had better things to do, Donghyuck was convinced and this wasn’t some self-pity act. He honestly thought that they shouldn’t be spending so much time and effort on someone who might not be useful to the team anymore. Even if he could still pilot Golden Sunset, who was going to be his co-pilot then? It wasn’t an easy task finding Donghyuck a co-pilot the first time, or the second time, and even the third time after Mark had appeared in his life again. And finding a co-pilot was never going to be an easy task to begin with. Not only for Donghyuck but for every Ranger out there. Drift Compatibility didn’t come just because people wanted it. Even those who yearned for it the most may not be able to find someone they could Drift with in the end.

Subconsciously, Donghyuck thought about Mark. Thought about his condition, about his wounds, about how scared he must feel. Mark was always the bravest of the Rangers but Donghyuck just couldn’t help but worry.

Three weeks had passed but he still wasn’t allowed to walk around freely on his own despite being able to walk again. He also had to remain in the infirmary for more check-ups, _just in case,_ according to Renjun. In all honesty, Donghyuck wasn’t sure what else they had to ‘make sure’ of seeing that he could already walk and the feeling was returning to his left hand.

_Procedures,_ Dongyoung had told him one of the few times he had visited. Dongyoung was a busy man so it made Donghyuck feel heartened that the head of LOCCENT would spend his free time visiting this disabled Ranger.

Disabled had been the right term to describe himself, but not anymore. Donghyuck had entertained thoughts about piloting Golden Sunset with only one leg left – given that Golden Sunset was still in commission and that he was allowed or even able to pilot a Jaeger again. Though he had also wondered what he would do if he could never pilot a Jaeger ever again.

He had even considered applying to LOCCENT but immediately got rid of the thought when he imagined working under Dongyoung and with Renjun. He wouldn’t be able to survive a day, not because he didn’t like the two but because deep down, he knew that he would be yearning for the fight, for the Drift, for Mark. There wasn’t another proper job for him, not in the Shatterdome at least. If he was to stay in the Shatterdome, there was only one job for him – to be a pilot.

And that was exactly what he was going to be.

“I heard you’re finally going to be checked out next week.”

Donghyuck snapped out of his train of thoughts and found Renjun sitting in the chair next to his bed.

“When did you come in?”

“When you were deep in thought about Mark,” Renjun answered instantly.

“I wasn’t thinking about him,” Donghyuck protested but to no avail as Renjun simply raised his hand for Donghyuck to stop talking. There was something different about Renjun though. “Why do you look so happy?”

“Chenle’s here,” Renjun replied in a beat, all smiles. “It’s been three years too.” His gaze became softer and Donghyuck smiled, knowing how much his friend missed the other LOCCENT officer.

“Why is he back in the L.A. Shatterdome though?” Donghyuck’s tone was serious. “What happened in Hong Kong?” He frowned when he saw Renjun grinning widely.

“Nothing happened,” Renjun said cheerily. “On the contrary, something good happened.”

Frowning at how elusive Renjun was being, Donghyuck tried to process the LOCCENT officer’s words but gave up. “What?”

“Something good happened,” Renjun clarified while nodding his head happily. “There aren’t many Kaijus out there anymore. And you know with what happened here, with Giga and all that…” his voice trailed off, wondering if he was touching a sensitive topic but Donghyuck looked unaffected at the mention of Giga. “They just didn’t need that many officers in Hong Kong anymore.”

“And out of every officer, Chenle was one of the one transferred here?”

“If you’re insinuating that I pulled some strings to get him over, no I didn’t.” Renjun glared at Donghyuck. “I’m not Jisung.”

“Of course, it was Jisung,” Donghyuck laughed.

“It _was_ Jisung,” Renjun insisted on Chenle’s transfer being the youngest LOCCENT technician’s doing, affronted that Donghyuck didn’t believe him. “You know, I came here to give you some good news, but seeing how you don’t trust me, I don’t think you need to hear it. It’s not like you’ll believe me anyway. Goodbye, Donghyuck. And I will never visit you again,” he said dramatically.

“Is he awake?” Donghyuck blurted as soon as Renjun stood up. He didn’t think that Renjun would really leave, but it looked like the other was serious this time. “He’s awake, isn’t he?”

“Why don’t you put your legs to some good use?”

Donghyuck didn’t need Renjun to repeat his words as he swiftly got out of bed.

He stopped at the entrance when he realised he didn’t know where Mark was. “So, where is he?”

*****

Donghyuck didn’t think there could be another room more sterile than his but he was proven wrong the moment he stepped into the room where Mark was resting. There were various tubes inserted into Mark’s body, similar to the state Donghyuck had been in just weeks ago. He knew how much pain Mark was in but the other boy wasn’t showing any signs of it.

“Hey,” he said softly as he approached Mark’s bedside.

Mark still had an oxygen mask on so he couldn’t say anything but his face lit up upon seeing Donghyuck, bringing a smile to the latter’s face.

Sitting on the chair next to the bed, Donghyuck took one of Mark’s hands into his own. He gently raised it, pressing kisses to the other boy’s knuckles, lips lingering for a moment before placing Mark’s hand back down.

His lips began to quiver as he tried to speak, and Mark squeezed his hand.

“Don’t comfort me,” Donghyuck scolded half-heartedly, sniffing. “I came here to talk to you. Well, talk at you since you can’t reply me.” He smiled again when he saw corners of Mark’s eyes crinkling in mirth. “So, just listen to me, I guess.”

Turning away from Mark, Donghyuck fixed his gaze on the heartrate monitor. He focused on the sound of the consistent beeps the monitor emitted.

“You did well,” Donghyuck began softly. “We did well. Sunset was amazing out there. We destroyed a Category Four Kaiju. Do you know how many people can claim that they did that?” Donghyuck looked back at Mark, only to find the other with his brows etched deep in concentration, probably trying to find an answer to Donghyuck’s question. “It was rhetorical. I don’t know either,” Donghyuck admitted with a sheepish smile while Mark rolled his eyes fondly, the sides of his lips twitching up. “I would say less than ten though.”

At Mark’s sceptical look, Donghyuck pouted.

“We’re in the top ten Rangers in this whole world, okay. We’re better than Jeno and Jaemin.”

Mark looked like he was trying to contain his laughter before his face scrunched up in discomfort, in pain, making Donghyuck’s heart ache.

“I should have been on the left side,” Donghyuck muttered, but Mark caught it in the quietness of the room and he started shaking his head, or tried to at least. “You’re right. I’m the dominant pilot, so my place is on the right.”

If Mark could say something at that moment, they would have gotten into a small fight, bickering non-stop until one or the other gave in, and it usually ended in a kiss. It did these days anyway.

Mostly, Donghyuck hated these petty arguments because he didn’t like wasting time fighting with Mark when they could be training together or doing something more. At times, he enjoyed riling the other boy up just to mock him in return.

Right now, all Donghyuck wanted was for Mark to start another one of their fights again.

_I miss you too._

There it was, Ghost-Drifting; connected by their hearts and minds even when they were disconnected from the Neural Handshake.

“I never said I missed you.”

Mark looked mildly offended and Donghyuck raised a challenging eyebrow.

_Whatever._

Laughing softly, Donghyuck leaned forward, resting his cheek against his palm as he started to comb Mark’s hair. Letting his hand fall to Mark’s ear, he folded it once, chuckling again when Mark frowned. “Rest well, Mark,” Donghyuck said, his voice barely a whisper before he bent down and laid a kiss on Mark’s forehead.

Then he felt Mark weakly tugging at his sleeve. Pulling away he looked down and saw Mark staring straight into his eyes.

Swallowing the lump in his throat, Donghyuck slowly brought his hand up to the oxygen mask. Carefully, he began to remove it, only a little. Just a bit so that he could close the distance between their lips.

*****

It took another two months before Mark was finally up and walking about the Shatterdome. The doctor’s advice was for him to continue resting in bed a little while longer and Mark usually took instructions well, unless Donghyuck had something up his sleeves – which Donghyuck did. So that was how Mark found himself out of bed even before the crack of dawn.

“Where are we going?” Mark asked as he followed Donghyuck up the stairs.

“Just shut up and follow me.”

“I am following you.”

“Then shut up.” Looking back over his shoulder, Donghyuck smirked when he saw Mark glaring at his back. Laughing loudly, he turned back to face the front, skipping two steps at a time, grinning when he heard Mark curse as he tried to keep up. Mark was technically still on bed rest so he shouldn’t be exerting too much strength but Donghyuck would never intentionally put harm in Mark’s way. A little speed-walking wouldn’t hurt. “I found this place while I was waiting for you to recover.”

“You mean when you were supposed to be on bed rest,” Mark clarified.

“Same difference.”

Skipping the last three steps, Donghyuck stopped in front of a metal door. He waited until Mark was standing beside him before he put his hand on the latch. Facing Mark, he smiled sweetly at his partner. “You ready?”

Face scrunched up in worry, Mark looked between Donghyuck and the door. “Please don’t tell me it’s a Kaiju behind this.”

Ignoring Mark, Donghyuck pulled the latch and pushed open the door.

“The Shatterdome has a rooftop?” Mark wondered aloud in awe as he stepped out into the open space, admiring the view of the city lights. 

“Not quite a rooftop.” Standing next to Mark with his arms crossed over his chest, Donghyuck tried to supress a shiver when a gust of wind blew past. “It’s more like a really high balcony at the edge of the Shatterdome.”

Mark glared at Donghyuck. “Don’t ruin it.”

“Come here.” Donghyuck grabbed Mark’s hand and dragged the older boy along with him.

They reached the edge of the platform and Mark gasped in amazement when the view of the city greeted his eyes. “It’s actually all kind of beautiful when there isn’t a Kaiju around.”

There wasn’t much to see because the sky was still dark. But not for long. Mark could see a warm orange glow in the distance, lighting up the blue ocean just a bit.

“The most beautiful part isn’t here yet,” Donghyuck said excitedly, moving back and forth on his heels. “Sit down.”

Mark looked at the edge, but not past it before turning to Donghyuck. “Here?”

Letting their legs dangle over the edge didn’t really seem a good idea but they did it anyway.

“Are you afraid of falling down?” Donghyuck asked as he swung his legs.

Sucking in a deep breath, Mark was about to look down when Donghyuck said, “don’t.”

Donghyuck looked at Mark with a smile on his face. “Don’t look down. Look at me. There’s nothing to see there. I’ve never looked down before.”

“How would you know there’s nothing to see, then?” Mark rolled his eyes when Donghyuck shrugged, still smiling brightly at him. “Where do you look?”

Leaning back on his arms, Donghyuck closed his eyes and lifted his head up. “At the sky, of course.” He opened his eyes again and tilted it slightly so he could look at Mark. “But I’m going to look at you today.”

Sitting back upright, Donghyuck shifted closer to Mark until the side of their thighs were pressing against each other. Then he moved his face nearer to Mark’s and captured the older boy’s lips in a sweet kiss.

On instinct, Mark curled his hand around Donghyuck’s neck, pressing the other closer to deepen the kiss.

Donghyuck’s stopped swinging his legs, his toes curling in delight when Mark moved in closer and closer until there was no air left to breathe.

Breaking the kiss, Donghyuck stared at Mark, eyes half-lidded, cheeks flushed, and lips starting to grow fuller from all the sucking.

“I missed kissing you, that’s for sure.”

“What are we, Donghyuck?”

“We’re co-pilots,” Donghyuck replied simply.

“That’s it?”

“We’re friends.” Donghyuck knew the answer that the other boy wanted to hear. But he wasn’t going to give it. Not now.

“Not more than that?”

“I don’t think we should be thinking about dating and love and all that when we’re in the midst of war against monsters, if that’s what you’re suggesting.”

“Many other co-pilots date each other too.”

“I’m not like many other co-pilots,” Donghyuck said. “Sorry I’m not your ideal co-pilot who can date you.” He smiled wryly at Mark.

“You are my ideal co-pilot,” Mark muttered quietly. “You’re perfect.”

Blush colouring his cheeks, Donghyuck looked away. “I’ll date you when the war is over.”

Mark quickly whipped his head towards Donghyuck. “That’s what you said the last time too. I thought you were just pulling my leg or letting me down softly, but you’re serious, right? You’re not joking, are you? Because I swear, Donghyuck, if you play me like tha – ”

His next words were swiftly cut off by Donghyuck’s lips abruptly pressed against his. Lifting his hand to cup Donghyuck’s face, Mark deepened the kiss and moved closer as the sun ascended slowly like it does every day and dyed the sky the colour of autumn leaves.

_“When the war is over, I want to kiss you over and over again. I want to hold your hand in public and I want to take you out on dates. I want to have dinner at fancy restaurants and supper by the roadside. I want to wake up to your face. I want to fall in love with you.”_

Mark had many hopes and dreams.

Donghyuck just hoped it wouldn’t be the last sunrise they see together.

*****

“I want to go to Hong Kong too,” Donghyuck complained as he fell into step with Mark. The alarm just sounded and it would have been Violet Destiny’s job to fight if she hadn’t been sent away just an hour before. It was nerve-wrecking, almost, for Donghyuck since this would be Golden Sunset’s first fight since she got repaired. But he wasn’t about to let it show or bring him down. “Why does Destiny always get to go elsewhere while we’re stuck here?”

“Because Destiny’s lighter than Sunset. Makes it easier and faster for transport,” Mark explained, as logical as always. “Sunset’s also technically still out-of-commission, but the Marshal doesn’t a choice now, does he? So I say it’s win for us that Violet Destiny got shipped out.”

“Are you calling Sunset fat?” Donghyuck made a face at Mark. “And I wasn’t asking.”

Laughing, Mark shook his head, fond and incredulous at the same time. “Golden Sunset just has heavier parts, that’s all.”

“Stop calling Sunset heavy. And like I said, I wasn’t really asking.”

“They went to Sydney.”

Donghyuck abruptly stopped as Mark continued walking. “What? Sydney?” Frowning at Mark’s back, Donghyuck chased after the older boy. “I want to go to Sydney too.” He slowed down to match Mark’s pace once they were side by side again. “I want to see Jung Jaehyun.”

“What?” Mark spluttered, stopping right in front of the bridge to the Conn-Pod, and turning around to face Donghyuck, effectively blocking both their way. “You like Jung Jaehyun?”

“Everyone has a crush on Jung Jaehyun.” Donghyuck sighed dreamily, clasping his hands together and started blinking at an annoyingly fast but also comical speed.

“I don’t,” Mark muttered bitterly. “And I spent two years with him at Sydney.”

Rolling his eyes, Donghyuck nudged Mark aside so that he could get to the Conn-Pod. “Get out of the way.” 

“Jaehyun’s great but I’m better,” Mark said once they were suited up.

“I had the biggest crush on you anyway,” Donghyuck admitted casually, smiling to himself. He didn’t have to look at Mark to know that the other was sporting a ridiculous yet silly grin on his face while internally debating on what to say and struggling with words that were sure to fail him.

Dongyoung’s cough interrupted Mark from stuttering a reply or saying anything further before Marshal Moon’s voice came over the speaker.

_“Good afternoon, Rangers. You’re dealing with a Category Two Kaiju here. Codenamed Matrix.”_

The Drift was a familiar process by now, but Donghyuck felt like he learnt something new about Mark’s days in Sydney whenever they Drifted. It was Jung Jaehyun’s face that first appeared in Donghyuck’s mind, followed by a string of stuttering words – _“it’s great to meet you, Ranger Jung”_, Mark was lying on his back, his eyes closed as he feet dangled off a ledge, the sky was midnight blue before it slowly morphed into a warmer colour, casting light and shadows on Mark’s serene face, Mark laid on his bed, a phone pressed to his ear as he drummed his fingertips against his thigh, then he put the brought the phone away, letting his hand fall to his side as the caller ID flashed _Donghyuck_, he pressed the red button to end the call before the line could connect, Mark’s doing a set of push-ups before his arms gave way, he screwed his eyes shut tight, Mark was on the plane heading towards Los Angeles, and then Donghyuck saw his own smile. 

“I thought you didn’t have a crush, Ranger Lee?” Donghyuck teased, unable to contain his laughter.

“Ass.”

“It’s great to meet you, Ranger Jung! Donghyuck mocked in a high-pitched voice.

“He’s a hero, okay,” Mark justified his infatuation. “He discovered a lighter weight material to build the Jaegers despite not being a technician. He’s amazing.”

Donghyuck scoffed. “I bet you don’t know what that material is called.”

“I bet you don’t either,” came Mark’s instant retort.

“I don’t,” Donghyuck gave in easily with a laugh. “Did you try calling me?”

“Every week.”

_“Sunset, do report once you’re done flirting,”_ came Dongyoung’s bored voice over the intercom.

Donghyuck made a show of clearing his throat just to annoy Dongyoung. “Sir, we’ll punch Matrix a few times before blasting it into bits,” he said in a professional tone before he burst out laughing while still moving towards Matrix.

Mark joined in with the laughing, and soon they heard the Marshal laughing along with them as Dongyoung muttered things about _Jeno being the best_ as always.

Clenching their fingers into a fist, they raised their right hand the same time Sunset raised her own metal fist. Neither of them said a word or gave a command before landing a blow to the side of Matrix’s face. Their left hands were clenched into a fist too and they punched Matrix again before the monster could regain balance. They kept up their punches against the beast, relentless with their attacks. But there was an opening and Matrix caught it, pushing Golden Sunset back with an enormous strength. Donghyuck and Mark weren’t going to let Sunset fall in the water though, not again.

Golden Sunset skidded back in the water but Donghyuck’s and Mark’s feet were firmly planted to the ground and without pausing, they charged forward, ramming into Matrix’s head with Sunset’s own metal one. Matrix’s mouth opened wide, letting out a long and ugly screech and this was when Donghyuck and Mark saw their chance.

_Loading Plasmacaster._

Without a second thought, they fired the canon right into Matrix’s mouth. The blast sent off a gigantic impact, rippling in the ocean. Smoke filled the air and they were beginning to lose vision of the monster – if it was still alive. Blue substance was flying everywhere, most of it landing on Golden Sunset.

“Gross,” Donghyuck groaned.

_“You’re not the one cleaning it,”_ Dongyoung scoffed.

“I’m being empathetic,” Donghyuck stated as a matter of fact. 

“Is it dead?” Mark asked, breathless.

There was a pause, the air was still, nothing moved. Then they heard Dongyoung cheering over the speaker.

Heaving a sigh of relief, Donghyuck laughed. “I’ll take that as a ‘yes’.”

_“Welcome back, Sunset,”_ Marshal Moon congratulated.

*****

Weeks had passed since Golden Sunset was fully back into commission. The number of Kaijus were rapidly increasing and the Rangers were starting to get tired. They were beginning to lose sight of hope, of a purpose, of a future. Was there ever going to be an end to all of this? Everyone was starting to grow weary and doubtful. That was why the Marshals across the globe had convened a meeting where they had decided that it was time. Time to close the rift that was sending the Kaijus over to their world. It would be the biggest project yet and if they failed, there wouldn’t be a ‘they’ anymore.

“This is it. This is it,” Donghyuck repeated to himself over and over again like it was a mantra.

The siren blared loudly throughout the Shatterdome. It was the longest siren Donghyuck had ever heard; representative of the scale of the mission. His heart was pumping quickly in his chest as he rubbed his hands together to calm himself down. There was fear, no doubt there was fear, but Donghyuck was no coward. He felt apprehension too, but mostly excitement. The feeling of excitement was back. Giga was merely a thing in the past. And what was in the past couldn’t hurt him anymore. Adrenaline filled his veins, rushing through his body and sending his brain into a mild frenzy. But this was it.

Suddenly, someone grabbed his hand, pulling him into a small corner.

“Mark,” Donghyuck gasped when he was backed against a wall. “What are you – ”

“Let me speak first,” Mark interrupted, prompting Donghyuck to shut his mouth. “This is it,” he began, echoing Donghyuck’s words from earlier (not that he knew). But it brought a smile to Donghyuck’s face anyway. “I just want to thank you, Donghyuck. So, thank you. Thank you for everything you’ve given me. Every smile, every prayer, every kiss. I don’t think I can ever recover from what happened with Giga, or even if I do, it’ll take a very long time and I hope you’ll still be by my side then. But I’m glad that I went through it with you. And if all of this is over – ”

“We’ll date,” Donghyuck finished for the other. “When the war is over, we’ll date. There’s no ‘ifs’ here, Mark.”

“Donghyuck, I – ”

Bringing two fingers to Mark’s lips, Donghyuck shook his head before letting his hand fall away. “I know, Mark. Me too. But save it for after the war.”

Cupping Donghyuck’s face with both his hands, Mark leaned in for a kiss. Donghyuck instinctively wrapped his arms around Mark’s waist as he rested his head against the wall, bringing Mark closer to him so that their bodies were pressing against each other.

“Stop making out,” Jaemin’s voice broke them apart.

“I told you to be nice about it!” Jeno scolded from behind. “Sorry Donghyuck. Sorry Mark.” Jeno looked so genuinely apologetic that Donghyuck couldn’t bring himself to shout at Jaemin.

The four Rangers walked towards the jet plane that would be taking them to the Shanghai Shatterdome in silence. Their Jaegers had been brought over to the other side of the world a day earlier in preparation for the big fight. It was going to be a long ride for them though.

“We’ll be there in the morning,” Jeno said and the other three Rangers nodded in affirmation.

Sleep would elude them all that night as they flew across the Pacific Ocean.

*****

There was nothing special about the Shanghai Shatterdome except for its size that kind of made it the most special Shatterdome in the world.

“It’s bigger than any of the other Shatterdomes I’ve been to,” Mark marvelled as he drank in the sight of how high the ceiling was. “They managed to fit all of our Jaegers here? That’s impressive.”

“They had to tear down some structures to fit them all. The original design couldn’t have stored them all,” Donghyuck explained, looking around himself and nodding at how impressive everything looked. Los Angeles was great, but Donghyuck hadn’t seen the outside of the L.A. Shatterdome in years.

“That’s a pretty risky investment, isn’t it?” Mark wondered aloud, earning him a glare from Donghyuck.

“Don’t talk like that, Mark. I’m planning on dating you after this whole thing is over and I plan on dating you for a damn long time, so shut up,” Donghyuck snapped and while it scared off some passers-by, Mark wasn’t fazed at all. He glared at Mark just for good measures before turning away from him.

Resting a hand on Donghyuck’s shoulder, Mark squeezed it. “Hey.” He waited for Donghyuck to face him before he continued speaking. “We’ll be fine.” And just with those simple words, the tension left Donghyuck and he slumped forward. “You’ve been on edge all day.”

Giving Mark a wry smile, Donghyuck nodded. “It’s been a long day and the fight hasn’t even started. I’m scared, Mark.”

“I’m scared too.”

_“All Rangers, report to your station now.”_

Sharing one last look, Mark took Donghyuck’s hand. “Let’s go.”

They met Jeno and Jaemin standing near the entrance of the bridge leading to their Conn-Pod, foreheads pressed to each other as Jaemin said soft, comforting words to calm Jeno down. Donghyuck and Mark understood their hesitance and anxiety. They understood why they weren’t crossing the bridge and getting into their drivesuit.

And they paused at the entrance of their own bridge.

Turning to Mark, Donghyuck tightened his hand over the older boy’s. “I’m not ready for this. I don’t think I’ll ever be.” There was desperation in Donghyuck’s eyes, pleading Mark to take him away, some place far, far away so that he wouldn’t be forced to go out there. It was a moment of cowardice but a moment that was understandable and a moment that Donghyuck would allow himself to have. It wasn’t the time to be fearless.

Wordlessly, Mark squeezed back Donghyuck’s hand, not caring that his fingers were starting to feel numb with how hard Donghyuck was gripping them. “Yes, you are.” Mark wasn’t saying it to pacify Donghyuck. He truly meant it. “I need this war to be over, Donghyuck. I need you.”

Donghyuck sucked in his lower lip, casting his eyes downwards as he said a small prayer in his heart before looking back up and meeting Mark’s eyes with a newfound determination in his own. “I’m ready.”

He looked over his shoulder and shared a look of understanding with Jeno before taking the first step onto the bridge with Mark by his side. He expected to feel everything happening in slow-motion but it was the complete opposite of that.

They got fitted into their drivesuits faster than ever before and it made Donghyuck grow more anxious by the second. He couldn’t hold Mark’s hand but he could feel that other looking at him and that alone was able to calm him down.

“You can say ‘hi’ to Jung Jaehyun later,” Mark said suddenly.

It took a while for the words to sink in and when they finally did, Donghyuck laughed, free and easy, like a burden had been lifted off of his shoulders. “Shut up.”

As soon as they were in position, Marshal Moon’s voice came over the speaker and the familiarity of it all made them feel like they were back at L.A. again.

_“Alright, Violet Destiny, Golden Sunset – L.A. is counting on you as its representatives. Make me proud.”_

“You got it, Marshal,” Donghyuck said happily, confidence rushing back into his system, cleansing him of all the previous doubt and negativity.

_“We’ll kick some Kaiju ass today.”_ Jeno sounded as excited as Donghyuck was.

_“When have we ever disappointed you?”_ Jaemin joined in.

“We’ll do better than our best, Sir,” Mark added, voice unwavering.

This was it. The last time.

_“You’ll be closing the Breach today.”_

“Finally, we’re out of sunny Los Angeles,” Donghyuck laughed. Then he sighed softly. “I’ve never seen the Breach before,” he continued quietly.

Mark turned to Donghyuck, meeting the latter’s doubtful eyes. “Me neither.” And just like that, all fear and anxiety vanished from Donghyuck’s gaze again. “And we’re going to close it today.”

_“Stop flirting,”_ Jaemin scolded through the sound system.

_Neural Handshake, initiating._

It was Donghyuck’s first day at the Shatterdome and it was Mark’s too. They were seeing the same memory, only it was a mix of both their perspectives. Donghyuck saw Mark’s gaze shifting down from his eyes to his lips while Mark saw Donghyuck avoiding eye-contact out of embarrassment.

Then the scene shifted – Donghyuck’s hand brushed against Mark’s but he pulled away swiftly as if burned, _“Lee Donghyuck!”_ Mark shouted into the distance, Mark was standing outside Donghyuck’s room, about to knock on his door when he turned around and ran away, Donghyuck had his head rested on the table as he stared at Mark sideways, eyes following the older boy across the room, watching the way his arm muscles contracted, Donghyuck threw his head back, laughing about something stupid Renjun had just said, then whacking Mark on the back as the older boy tried to mask his pained expression, _“I like you, Mark,”_ Donghyuck slurred before Mark crashed their lips together, Mark watched the television screen light up after Golden Sunset fired a shot, Donghyuck was in his drivesuit, lifting his leg up to land a kick to the side of the Kaiju, but as he swung his leg, he wasn’t in his drivesuit anymore and his leg connected with the back of Mark’s thigh, followed by an annoying laugh, _“Hi, I’m Lee Mark. What’s your name?”_.

There were three Kaijus out in the ocean, two Category Threes and one Category Four.

Spikes were flying Golden Sunset’s way but Donghyuck and Mark ducked in time to miss most of them. One unfortunately landed in Sunset’s right thigh, causing both Rangers to hiss in pain before moving to tear the spike off. As Donghyuck and Mark made to stabilise themselves, they were thrown backwards by the impact of Violet Destiny hitting them. Metal clashed against metal but the sound wasn’t loud enough to beat the dying screech of one of the Kaijus.

_“Destiny, Sunset, report.”_ It was the first time the Marshal sounded so anxious, even more so than when he got worried.

“We’re fine,” Donghyuck quickly answered. “Destiny is too. We’re both getting back up now.”

_“Who destroyed that Kaiju, Marshal Moon?”_ Jaemin asked in awe.

_“Tornado Spiral._

“Rangers Lee Taeyong and Jung Jaehyun?” Donghyuck asked in confirmation.

“Your heroes,” Mark teased. 

_“You have new orders, Rangers,”_ Marshal Moon said suddenly. _Destiny is the quickest Jaeger here and Sunset has the strongest canon power,”_ Marshal Moon stated. _“Your orders are to head towards the breach. The other Jaegers will take care of the remaining Kaijus out here for now.”_

“Yes, Marshal.” Four voices answered simultaneously.

“You’re my hero, Mark.”

_“Just carry out your order, damn it,”_ Dongyoung scolded, but the fear was evident in his voice. _“And stay safe. All of you,”_ he warned.

_“All of you are coming home. We’re all going home,”_ said a new voice.

“Yes, yes, Renjun, I’ll bring you home,” Donghyuck assured.

_“You better.”_

“Are we good to go, Destiny?” Mark asked as he looked to his left and saw the other Jaegers in combat with the remaining three Kaijus. “So Destiny will reach the Breach first and try to stop any more Kaijus from coming into our world. Then Sunset will join her in approximately two and a half minutes and then we’ll do our best to destroy whatever part of the Breach we can before the other Jaegers come to help us both. Are we clear on everything?”

_“Ready whenever you are,”_ Jeno affirmed.

“Then let’s go.”

No more words needed to be exchanged and both Violet Destiny and Golden Sunset started to run towards the Breach. The moment Destiny was closing in on the rift, two Kaijus started crawling out but luckily they were small enough for Destiny to destroy them before Sunset reached their side.

“Fire away, Sunset,” Donghyuck announced, trying to keep his voice stable.

_Loading Plasmacaster_

_We’re fine, Donghyuck. Breathe._

Quickly looking to his left, Donghyuck found Mark smiling at him. And that was enough to renew his determination to fight and carry on. He was afraid. He was doubtful. He was shaking on the inside with anxiety. Fear was crippling him from the inside-out. But Mark was feeling it too. Donghyuck wasn’t alone in this.

Multiple blasts went off Golden Sunset’s canon and screeches could be heard from inside the Breach. Donghyuck didn’t know how long they had been firing Sunset’s canon and missiles. He didn’t know when Violet Destiny had joined in on shooting at the open Breach. He didn’t realise that Cosmic Crusher and two other Jaegers had appeared by Golden Sunset’s side and were destroying the Breach with them. Bit by bit, parts of the Breach were crumbling away. Cries of death echoed throughout the Pacific Ocean as the Breach crashed onto the Kaijus that were trying to enter the human world.

“We need to reload our canons,” Donghyuck noted urgently.

_“Relax, Donghyuck. Go ahead,”_ Jeno comforted.

_“We all got this. Look around,”_ Jaemin said, his voice tired but certain.

A quick survey around the area told Donghyuck once again that he wasn’t alone.

“We’re all doing this together, Donghyuck. We can reload our canons,” Mark assured the other boy. “Donghyuck, breathe.”

Sometimes, words sounded better aloud after all.

And Donghyuck took in a deep breath. 

There were just a few parts of the Breach left. Just a bit more. Just a while longer.

Claws appeared suddenly over the Breach and multiple Jaegers started firing at the same spot. It was a Kaiju for sure, but what would take to destroy this one? Or the other one that was crawling out?

_“All at once,”_ Marshal Moon commanded. _“Make this the last shot. It’ll be everyone’s last shot._

“On the count of three!” Donghyuck shouted. “Canon.”

“One,” Mark began.

_Loading Plasmacaster_

_“Two,”_ Jeno and Jaemin said simultaneously.

Taking in another deep breath, Donghyuck calmed his nerves. “Three.”

Both Violet Destiny and Golden Sunset, and all the other Jaegers that were there fired their canons at the same time, right at the main opening of the breach where four more Kaijus were just emerging from.

Claws vanished, disappearing into a blinding white light as deafening and chilling shrieks filled the air, sending massive soundwaves over the ocean surface. As the last Kaiju went down in flames in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, Donghyuck was certain that every Shatterdome around the world, every person living in the world had erupted into cheers of victory. The last part of the Breach faded into nothing. The gaping hole that monsters had crawled out from was closed. Finally, the sky was clear again; as if nothing had been there for the past fifteen years.

“We did it,” Donghyuck whispered, the fight draining from his body as his eyes started to feel hot with tears pooling in them. “We did it.” He felt before he heard Mark sniffling next to him. And without any words, he understood what Mark was feeling that very moment. He understood the words running through Mark’s mind. And one thing stood out to him.

_I love you._

Helicopters arrived at the scene at top speed to pick the Jaegers up to bring the Rangers back to the Shatterdome. To bring the Rangers home.

The war was over.

*****

There airplane’s tyres screeched when it connected with the granite floor, making Donghyuck and Mark tense up; Giga’s shrieks still remained vivid in their minds despite the months that had passed.

“It’s okay,” Mark muttered. He wasn’t sure if it was to comfort Donghyuck or himself, but they both needed it either ways. He grabbed onto Donghyuck’s hand and squeezed it to assure himself that Donghyuck was still there, that Donghyuck was still alive, and that they were together. Back home together.

“Welcome to Seoul,” the pilot said over the intercom and they both let out a breath they didn’t know they had been holding.

They didn’t exchange any hugs or words as they got off the plane, or even when they passed the empty immigration counters and reached the baggage claim area. But as soon as they were past the sliding glass doors of the arrival hall and into the main building of the airport, Mark yawned loudly, stretching his arms over his head.

“It’s been way too long since I yawned.”

“You were yawning constantly on the plane,” Donghyuck deadpanned.

Mark grinned at Donghyuck sheepishly. “It was a long ride.”

Throwing an arm around Donghyuck’s shoulder, Mark’s smile widened when he felt the other boy leaning on his shoulder.

“It’s over,” Mark said quietly. “It’s all finally over.”

“We’re home,” Donghyuck whispered, still not believing his eyes about where they were standing. “We’re home.”

The air at the Incheon International Airport smelt fresh, unlike the staleness that permeated throughout the city of Seoul ten years ago.

Dropping his bags to the side, Mark swiftly pulled Donghyuck in a hug, making the other boy drop his bags as well. He pressed a kiss to Donghyuck’s forehead and they stayed there for a long while. “We’re home,” Mark echoed Donghyuck’s previous words and leaned back to smile at the other. “It’s over.”

There were people staring, some were taking photographs of them, probably reporters who were overly excited about how they could finally talk about something other than Jaegers and Kaijus on the news. The Rangers were all everyone could talk about. How they saved the world. How they saved everyone. How they were the ones who had protected everyone who was still alive for fifteen long and gruelling years.

They would be all the masses would be talking about for the next few months at least. Maybe even the next few years. And that would definitely keep the all the Rangers busy. Busy with living the life of a celebrity. Meanwhile, the pilots of Golden Sunset would certainly stay in the spotlight for the next few days.

“Was the kiss a bad idea?” Mark asked, laughing when Donghyuck’s expression soured at all the camera lights flashing at them.

“If you want to kiss me,” Donghyuck began calmly. “Then _kiss_ me.”

Mark didn’t need to be told twice. He leaned in again and pressed their lips together, and it felt like the first time.

Who cared about the flashing lights and clicking of the shutter? Their pictures would probably be on the cover of every newspaper the next morning while they continued rebuilding the city with Golden Sunset, but it didn’t matter. The war was over. 

Perhaps in ten years’ time, no one would even remember the war against monsters, or remember Golden Sunset or any other Jaegers, let alone these pilots’ names or whatever love affair they had going on after the war.

“Does this mean we’re dating?” Mark asked, breaking the kiss.

“We’re dating,” Donghyuck said simply, laughing as he pressed their foreheads together. “I love you too.”

“I love you, Donghyuck.”

*****

“Hi, I’m Lee Mark. What’s your name?”

Donghyuck’s head shot up when he heard the other boy’s name. Eyes wide, he stared at Mark, then he looked down at the hand that was stretched out in his direction before raising his head to meet Mark’s eyes again. Mark was the best Ranger there, his scores were literally off the charts. Why in the world was he talking to Donghyuck?

“We were kind of neighbours back home, weren’t we? It’s just nice to see a familiar face here,” Mark explained as he sensed Donghyuck’s apprehension. “And I just realised that I never knew your name,” he added on with a sheepish smile when he noticed that Donghyuck was still feeling uncertain about this whole introduction.

Realising Mark’s sincerity, Donghyuck smiled widely. “Donghyuck. Lee Donghyuck.” Taking Mark’s proffered hand, Donghyuck shook it, his grip firm and steady. “And I will be your co-pilot.”

“Lee Donghyuck,” Mark repeated with a laugh, testing the younger boy’s name on his tongue, his eyes falling to Donghyuck’s lips while the other boy looked away in embarrassment just moments later. “I’ll see you in the Drift then.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [twt](https://twitter.com/fullsunlet)
> 
>   
Comments and kudos are appreciated!
> 
> Thank you for all the comments and kudos so far! This marks the end of Conquering Oceans. I'm really grateful for all the support I've received for this fic, and I hope to publish something new soon! <3 I have plenty of fic ideas and hopefully, I'll have more time to write them soon :D

**Author's Note:**

> [twt](https://twitter.com/fullsunlet)
> 
> Comments and kudos are appreciated!


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